


Fairy Tales

by Magpie57



Category: RWBY
Genre: Canon Divergent, F/F, F/M, Families of Choice, First story, Fluff, Full Pollination, Multi, Polyamory, Slow Burn, There's no such thing as regular updates
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-10-24
Updated: 2018-07-16
Packaged: 2018-08-24 08:11:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 32
Words: 99,490
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8364571
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Magpie57/pseuds/Magpie57
Summary: The daily lives of team RWBY in a world where the good guys lived, the bad guys lost, and the people you love heal all wounds.
In short: heavy on the fluff, light on the plot, and four dorks falling in love.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> As tagged, this is my first story and I would appreciate constructive criticism to help smooth out any awkwardness, especially in writing romantic scenes.
> 
> And it may take a while for some characters to show up and various relationships to be mentioned.
> 
> I began writing this early in volume three (nearly a year ago!) so a lot of current canon will not line up, though future chapters may weave in elements of the new volume.
> 
> Edit 10/8/17: Throughout writing this I may have sounded unsure of Enabler, but the second relationship tag ultimately applies.

1

Six weeks. Weiss had lasted a month and a half without her teammates and now here she was, standing on their doorstep, contemplating whether her loneliness had finally outweighed her pride. It had been nice at first, having a little apartment to herself while she worked up the money to find a place long term. Her sleep schedule was no longer a myth and she didn’t have to worry about someone crawling into bed with her or listen to the creaking of her partner’s bunk bed.

But it was strange.

Weiss found herself missing the constant sound and motion that her teammates, even Blake, inevitably made. She missed having someone to talk to at night, when sleep wouldn’t come or the nightmares hovered just on the other side of consciousness.

And her apartment was so unsettlingly pristine! Some days she would leave a coat over the back of the couch or leave her bed unmade in the morning just to make it feel like someone actually lived there. She occasionally contemplated finding a roommate, a slightly messy one, so that she could nag them to clean up, even if she only ended up doing it herself. On those few occasions, she would remind herself that she _could_ have a messy roommate, three in fact. Or at least two; Blake was pretty neat- not considering the shower drain.

Every time she would shake her head and conjure up all of the potential issues with that arrangement, ones that had already been prominent. Living with Yang was always noisy, Ruby had yet to develop and would likely never develop a sense of personal space, and Blake… okay, Blake was an excellent roommate, no arguing with that. But it would make dating tedious; gods only knew how Yang would torment any girlfriend she brought home and any dislike of Faunus would immediately put the girl on Blake’s shit list. Ruby was protective enough for both of them, her sister and her father and even Weiss would admit that Ruby holding Crescent Rose was a daunting sight, especially to a civilian.

Weiss tapped her toe on the doormat that read, ‘Hi, I’m Mat.’ She hadn’t a doubt in her mind that the two sisters had chosen that. And, she thought, there’s the issue of number of rooms.

When she had told them that she wasn’t interested, they had gone and rented a three room house rather than four. She had only seen the inside once when they had been searching for a place; Weiss had given this place her stamp of approval, in fact.

She licked her lips and raised her fist to knock, stopped, and shoved her hands in her pockets, turning to walk away. She made it three steps before she turned back, once again intent on knocking and once again deciding against it, though she made no move to leave this time.

The four of them talked every day or so, even when one or two or all three of them were on jobs. Sometimes they paired off, others they all went their own ways. Weiss had been working alone or with other, older Hunters who seemed to respect her well tested skills. It was late in the summer, but Weiss felt herself shudder. Dust, she missed being able to speak to them the moment she was overcome by memories.

Weiss swallowed hard and resolved to knock this time, but she was never given the chance.

The door was yanked open and she was tackled in a blur of rose petals. “Weiss, why didn’t you call? We’ve missed you so much!”

“Take it easy, dunce,” Weiss yelped, though her arms found purchase around Ruby’s waist. “I distinctly recall speaking with you yesterday.”

The scythe wielder jerked back, still clutching her former partner’s shoulders. “Yeah, but you didn’t say that you were visiting.” She physically dragged Weiss, who never resisted, into the house.

Blake and Yang were settled on the couch, the Faunus looking at her upside down, head on Yang’s lap. “I was wondering if you’d ever knock,” she said, wiggling her ears to make a point.

“I- I don’t mean to intrude,” Weiss started.

“And you’re not,” Yang cut in. “There’s a room for you. It’s the second door on the left upstairs.”

Ruby was practically bouncing, “And there’s a little room that you can use as an office, since you’re still working for your dad’s company. Blake and I were considering using it for a library, but we figured that we could fit all our books in our rooms.” She jabbed a finger at her sister, “Yang and I are sharing the master and she can fit pretty much everything in her dresser or the closet, so we’ve got plenty of space.”

Weiss waved her hands, flustered but secretly touched. “I never said anything about moving in!”

“Never had to,” Blake said, mouth curling into a smile. “All you had to do was show up. We’ve been waiting the whole time.”

Yang grinned at the heiress who was growing redder by the second, “I wanted to place bets on when you’d finally come, but Ruby said that if you found out you’d refuse on principle.”

“And I would have,” Weiss muttered. She glanced over at Ruby, who still hung on her arm. “Thanks for sparing my dignity,” she said softly.

The answering smile warmed Weiss’s stomach. “I didn’t want you to be alone again.” She reddened slightly, “Not that your girlfriend isn’t good company… I’m just glad you’re home,” Ruby managed. “Did you bring everything over, or do we have to make another trip?” she asked, quickly changing the subject.

And the noise started up again, Weiss explaining that she hadn’t brought _anything_ , expecting that this would only be a visit. Yang loudly complained about being used as a luggage mule, though she had yet to move from the couch, while Blake simply grabbed her own car keys so that they could get more in one run.

Home, Weiss thought as the four bickered in the doorway, I think I could get used to this.

~

“Wait,” Winter said slowly, the gears in her head visibly whirring. “You moved where?”

Weiss idly recited the address, a lower middle class area not an hour’s drive from the city. What it lacked in status and refinement it made up for in genial neighbors (according to the others, at least) and a competent mailwoman, a cute shepherd Faunus who had paused to introduce herself when Weiss followed Ruby out to the mailbox. Safe to say that the three bedroom, one and half bath home had grown on her.

“That’s not what I meant and you know it,” her sister grumbled accusingly. “I thought that you liked your apartment; it was a bit pricey for a beginning Huntress, but I know that you were making more than enough to keep it up. Did one of your former teammates coerce you into it?”

“There was no coercion, Winter,” the heiress sighed. She looked down at her scroll, taking in her sister’s consternation. “You never missed living with your teammates?”

The elder Schnee rolled her eyes, “My team was _nothing_ like yours. They were underachieving, unmotivated, half-rate trainees and they are underachieving, unmotivated, half-rate Hunters. If I speak to them today, it’s to tell them how badly they have failed or how they could have done better. Team RWBY…” Her expression morphed into something one part bemused and one part appreciative. “I don’t think there’s been a group like yours in years.”

“So why are you so surprised?” Weiss asked in exasperation.

Winter shifted in her seat, bringing the scroll a bit closer to give Weiss a deliberate look. “You have a girlfriend. One that you seem to like very much; I can’t imagine she’ll be too happy about you being forty-five minutes away, living with beautiful women that you love and trust, even platonically.”

Weiss straightened, pushing back her shoulders, “If Olive is jealous of my closest friends, she’s the one with the problem, not me. Besides, we haven’t been together a whole month now, it might end when I see her this weekend for all we know.

“Speaking of ending things,” she continued mischievously, “Have you finally informed Mr. Branwen that one night stands are meant to last only one night?”

Her sister’s face promised a violent death.

~

“So,” Weiss said on her first official night at the house, “What’s for dinner?”

It had been a long, trying day filled with cursing and swollen toes and Blake’s acerbic humor, but she was here. Her room was settled, wardrobe put away exactly where she liked, and her furniture- the things that hadn’t come with her rented apartment- was no worse for the wear. Even so, she had no qualms with cleaning up after or fixing dinner herself.

There was silence all around. Ruby ducked her head in embarrassment, Yang had the decency to look a little sheepish, and Blake pointed to the refrigerator, not deigning to look up from her novel, “Four different take out menus. Take your pick. Get me something with fish.”

The heiress’s eye twitched. “Have you three been eating take out the entire time you were here?”

Three heads bobbed, Ruby jumping to explain, “Well, I can bake, but I never really learned how to make regular food, you know? And I’m still kinda getting the hang of it. Blake doesn’t know how, but she knows some awesome take out places. And, well, Yang burns water.”

The blonde nodded emphatically.

“Lovely,” Weiss said, a vein throbbing in her temple. “What’s in the fridge- besides water and soda?”

“Uh, a six pack, some apples, and I think we have lunchmeat,” Yang offered. “Not sure how good it is.” She leaned forward in her seat, looking at Weiss with some concern, “Weiss? You alright there?”

A crack split the air- the snap of Weiss’s fingers- and the three couch-sitters all jumped in their seats. “Okay, everyone up; we’re going to the grocery store.” And Weiss was tapping furiously on her scroll, pounding out a list of necessities. The others just stared at her. She snapped again, “Move, girls. Tonight, I’m showing you how to make spaghetti with meat sauce and salads.”

“Will this be on the test?” Yang asked flippantly.

The pale woman gave her a withering glare, “Thank you, Yang, for volunteering to do dishes this week.” Icy eyes searched the other two, “Any questions?”

They shook their heads.

“So, move,” she ordered.

They obeyed, though Weiss caught what might have been, “Can we kick her out now?”

Of course, none of them complained an hour and a half later as they moaned in pleasure over their first homemade meal in months.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Against my better judgment, I'm putting this out the day after- before I lose my nerve.
> 
> Bumblebee shippers enjoy.
> 
> And thanks for the kudos and comments!

“Blake.”

“Yes, Weiss,” the Faunus asked, not bothering to open her eyes. She didn’t care how clichéd it was; she enjoyed tossing a blanket on their (minimal) front lawn and just basking in the sun on days like this. Of course, what she really came out here for was when Weiss got done introducing herself to the neighbors. Judging by the firmly shut door and Weiss’s halting steps as she left, it had gone as well as Blake had expected.

“Why,” Weiss asked slowly, settling beside her friend, “Were the McKnight’s so weird around me? That older couple invited me to stay for dinner- they thought I was perfectly charming, but _those_ two looked at me like I was some sort of psychopath, likely to snap at any moment.” Blake could practically hear her frown.

Blake sighed, stretching her arms over her head, before looking to Weiss, a smirk playing at her lips. “There may have been a… miscommunication.”

The heiress just stared down at her. “What type of miscommunication could lead to them practically kicking me out?”

“The kind in which they think we’re one big lesbian relationship,” Blake replied.

Weiss blinked. “What.”

“When we first moved in, Ruby-”

She interceded there, “Why am I not surprised?”

“Ruby,” Blake continued, “Introduced Yang and I as partners. They took it as most people might.”

“It wouldn’t be the first time you two have been mistaken for a couple,” Weiss noted.

The Faunus huffed, “Do you want me to explain or not?”

Weiss just nodded.

“Anyway, they made that assumption which wouldn’t be too bad if Ruby or Yang had any sense of personal space.” The two shared a mutually sympathetic look. “And of course, Yang picks up on their assumption, sees them hesitate at the way Ruby’s constantly touching one of us and runs with it.” Blake nodded at Weiss’s mixture of horror and curiosity. “The whole time they’re talking to us, Yang has her hands _somewhere_ , or her arm wrapped around one of us, at one point she even had Ruby on her lap with her arm over my shoulder. Naturally this is all going right over Ruby’s head.”

The confusion on Weiss’s face only deepened. “But why did they think I was in on it too? For all they know, I’m just a roommate.”

Blake’s expression was carefully neutral as she replied, “Ruby may have mentioned _her partner_ eventually moving in when we were first introduced.”

“That dunce,” Weiss grumbled, rubbing her temples. “Imagine what they’ll think if Olive ever visits.”

“Orgy,” Blake said, answering a question that hadn’t been asked.

The heiress groaned, “Dust help me if the media ever gets wind of this.”

Blake just patted her shoulder in empathy, though she giggled internally. Mr. Schnee would die of shame on the spot and if that wasn’t a pleasant thought it Blake’s mind, what was?

~

The young Huntress couldn’t help but feel out of place sitting across from her former professor and the reason that her life had played out as it had. Ozpin looked much like he had the day they met, if a bit more tired than four years ago.

Stumbling on him in a nearby coffee shop was not something she’d had on her agenda that day, but when he invited her to sit down, she couldn’t refuse her mentor and role model. So there they sat, with her cradling a cup of hot chocolate in her hands while he sipped from a large mug that the shop favored. Her stomach churned under his unflinching gaze, thinking of all the secrets he had held: how well he’d known her parents’ team, his knowledge of the goings on that the public didn’t and how he’d placed such a burden on her- only a child.

“How has the life of a Huntress been treating you, Ruby Rose?” he asked at last.

Ruby managed to smile, “Less exciting than the previous four years, but I wouldn’t be doing anything else. What about you? How’s this year’s batch of students?”

“As rough as they always are when they first arrive,” Ozpin replied. “But Professor Nikos is whipping them into shape very quickly. I’ve never met a person who could watch you fight a whole thirty seconds and then tell you everything that you’re doing wrong.”

“Just like Pyrrha,” Ruby murmured, heart aching. In spite of her skill, known all over Remnant, she’d had no desire to be a hero; she had just never known she could be anything else. The pressure of the world had broken down her façade of confidence. She had graduated with the second ranked team, but would not be a Huntress, for her own sake.

So when Goodwitch quit (according to rumor the phrase, ‘Fuck this, I’m not getting paid enough to be a glorified insurance policy in a school filled with hormonal and destructive teenagers’ was uttered) Pyrrha had been offered the job right off the bat; it was not a decision that Ozpin regretted.

“Have you kept in contact with your former schoolmates,” Ozpin asked with a knowing glint in his eyes. “Though I’m sure that you’re busy enough with all of the work you’ve been doing.”

“I live with my teammates,” Ruby admitted, though she got the feeling he already guessed as much. “And I see Team JNPR a few times a month. I saw Ren and Nora a few days ago; they’re planning a mission with Blake and Yang.” A smile touched her lips, “Still don’t know how their relationship, let alone their marriage, works.”

Ozpin nodded sagely, “Love is strange, Miss Rose. But I hear nothing but good things of the pair: efficient, cordial with their employers and never demanding with their rewards. Of course, I hear the same of you and your former team. Though your sister has carved out quite a reputation for property damage,” he added thoughtfully.

At that Ruby grinned, “She’s been like that since Dad first started teaching her. If P- er, Goodwitch wasn’t around, you’d owe millions of lien in property damage between her and Nora.”

“Oh,” Ozpin murmured, “I seem to recall an incident on your first day that involved blowing a hole in our courtyard alongside Miss Schnee.”

“Qrow and Winter were even worse on that same courtyard,” Ruby grumbled.

He smiled, “That they were; acting like a couple of children on the playground pulling each other’s hair.”

“They looked pretty serious at the time,” she sighed, though she had seen both of them fighting other foes and eventually figured that they hadn’t been out to kill each other. “Somehow they manage to look serious every time they fight.”

The pair grew quiet for a moment, each sipping their individual drinks.

It was a bit like with Blake, Ruby thought, but not quite as comfortable. She had, with much practice, learned to tell when Blake did or did not want conversation and they could just enjoy each other’s silence. Weiss had pretty much mastered the art as well, leaving only Yang who liked to drag her former partner into one activity or another; at least Yang knew when to accept a ‘no’.

“You seem to have a lot on your mind,” he said softly. “Perhaps I could repay you by offering an ear?”

Ruby shook her head, “No, I’m fine. Just thinking about my… I guess they aren’t really my team anymore, are they? I don’t really know how else to think of them.”

“Friends? Sisters? Family,” he offered.

The first one was true, no doubt. The second one only applied to Yang. That last one however… that one had some merit. “Family,” she whispered. “I like it.”

Ozpin’s expression was at once sad and sweet. “Every time a team is formed I hope that strong bonds are forged. I have only seen two similar beforehand.”

“And what happened to them?”

“One,” he said wistfully, “Still speaks, but has for the most part gone in different directions; one has a cause, the other a family, and two of them are working on their own. And the other,” he continued, expression darkening further, “is a ruin of something beautiful.”

Neither need speak further to know which team the latter was.

“But I have monopolized on your time long enough,” Ozpin told her, rising slowly.

She stood with him, “It was good seeing you.” Her earnest tone was a little surprising even to herself. “But next time,” Ruby licked her lips. “Next time I want to know more about that second team.”

“Next time,” he promised.

~

“You needed my pillows, why?” Blake asked slowly, taking in the surprisingly grand pillow throne that Yang had constructed: four at her back, two under each arm, and though she was on her bed, one to sit on. It had been a lovely surprise, getting out of a nice hot shower, slipping into her most comfortable pajamas and finding that her pillows had vanished from her room.

The blonde wiggled very deliberately in her seat, looking incredibly happy with herself, “Because, I’m reading.”

Blake arched an eyebrow, leaning in the doorway of the room Yang and Ruby split. It was easily twice the size of her room and three times as messy. Frankly, she was amazed that Weiss hadn’t sensed it on day one and come in to put everything away. But it had only been a few weeks and she would give it time.

“I read all the time,” the Faunus stated after a moment, “On the couch, on my bed, in the yard,” or what twenty square feet constituted as a backyard, “In the kitchen, on the front porch and at least a dozen public spaces,” she concluded, “But I never need seven pillows.”

“Because you can focus on whatever you read no problem, me? I need a reason to sit still.” She glanced at her partner over her book, “And actually, you rarely read on the porch, not after you met Sable. I thought you said that cat and dog Faunus don’t act like actual cats and dogs around each other.”

Eyes averted, Blake muttered, “His scent is off, like he wears some kind of perfume.” She shook her head, “That’s beside the point.”

At last, Yang put her book, a serial novel also stolen from Blake’s room, down. “And what is the point?”

“The point is,” Blake said slowly, “That you made a pillow throne. I was going to sleep on those pillows.”

Yang seemed to contemplate that. It didn’t take five seconds for her eyes to light and she patted her left armrest eagerly, “Go ahead. I can keep my mouth shut.”

Blake narrowed her eyes, searching Yang for any sign of a punch line- nothing. “You know what,” she decided, “Why not?” And she climbed onto Yang’s bed, taking over most of the right armrest- her two pillows. It was surprisingly easy to get comfortable; Yang’s mattress being even softer than hers and her partner’s oddly high body heat was soothing.

“Night, Blakey,” Yang murmured, fingers carding through Blake’s hair as she settled. Her ears flicked a few times, as if agitated, but the Faunus said nothing.

Yang tried refocusing on her book again, truly. The plot was interesting, dialogue on point, and the sex scenes were _gold_. But she would never miss an opportunity to make her partner purr. The book was set to the side entirely as Yang fidgeted into a half lying position, knocking several pillows to the floor.

“I thought you were reading,” Blake muttered. There was no irritation, no warning, just resignation.

“Well now I’m sleeping,” she said, never removing her fingers from Blake’s hair.

The Faunus sighed, “Still not getting my pillows back, am I?”

“Nope.”

~

“Ruby, have you seen Yang anywhere?”

The cloaked girl shook her head, “I haven’t seen her today. Actually, I was out all day and-”

She got cut off. “Your sister,” Weiss said abruptly, “left a load of laundry in both the washer and the dryer. I’m leaving for Atlas this weekend, so I need to have my things done. So,” the heiress said deliberately, “she can emerge from her hiding spot within the next twenty minutes and salvage her load, or I will dump everything on the floor while I take care of my clothes.”

“Uh, why are you telling me this?” Ruby inquired.

“Because you can do a quick run of the house and tell her as much and if she’s not here and won’t answer her scroll, I will do exactly that,” Weiss said briskly, already turning to her scroll. She gave Ruby a dismissive wave and the younger woman missed when she was the explicitly stated leader.

However, she did as she was asked, finding her sister within the first thirty seconds of her search. She hovered in the doorway, unknowingly mimicking Blake’s earlier actions as she stared at the two.

Yang had passed out in what looked like a pile of pillows, with Blake’s head buried in her stomach. Rough fingers were tangled in dark tresses, just behind the ears and Ruby could hear Blake purring from where she stood. Inwardly, so as not to wake them, Ruby squealed. She fumbled around her pockets until she found her scroll and snapped at least a dozen pictures of them, sending her favorite few to Weiss.

Knowing that even the so called Ice Queen wouldn’t disturb them tonight, Ruby closed the door softly behind her.

Weiss retreated to her room grumbling about the McKnight’s.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know if my characterization of Ozpin seemed off, if there are any interactions you want to see in the future (seriously, I only have so much planned out/written).
> 
> Fun fact: I don't actively ship Bumblebee- my brother is appropriately horrified. So tell me if that scene came out stiff at all.
> 
> Have a nice day.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is a little OC heavy, so I'm releasing the next one at the same time.
> 
> And, as the tag says, Weiss's girlfriend is temporary for plot (ha, I called this nonsense plot) and character building. Pollination (is that the right name for it?) is endgame.

Ruby sat on the porch, polishing Crescent Rose as she watched the mailbox. Crescent Rose didn’t need to be polished- it never did unless she had just slaughtered a shit-ton of Grimm- but it was repetitive and soothing, keeping her hands busy while her mind wandered. Of course, only to Ruby would cleaning a dangerous weapon be a form of meditation.

She had been staking out the mailbox all morning; okay, since nine, but she liked sleeping in when Weiss wasn’t around to make breakfast, or attempt to teach her how to make breakfast. That… was a work in progress. Ruby shook herself out of that line of thought- she had a job to do.

It wasn’t the fun, exciting kind, but it was an important one. With the sheer amount of packages that they got- dust rounds, shotgun rounds, specialized bullets for Crescent Rose and Gambol Shroud and whatever her dad or Winter decided to send them- she figured she should get know the mailman- woman- person. And the real problem was that: none of them were sure of said mailperson’s gender.

Yang had made an offhand comment about ‘him’ being incredibly cute, causing Weiss to say that ‘she’ was. Blake had offered her input in favor of the person, Sable, being male, though Ruby had always thought that they were a ‘she’. It had turned into something of a debate, or perhaps a running joke. No one except Ruby thought to ask the person, so there she was.

And there was still no sign of the shepherd Faunus that regularly delivered their packages, always on time and unharmed, a smile on their face.

Several cars had passed by, none of them the distinctive van used by the postal service. She had gotten some odd looks, one car even doubling back, a child pointing at her through the window. Ruby offered the boy a little wave before the car took off.

The scythe wielder slumped back against the door, grateful that everyone else was out. Weiss had been in Atlas the last three days, doing some deskwork for her father and halfheartedly attempting to shoo Qrow from Winter’s apartment; he’d been there on and off the last fourteen months and had moved a handful of belongings there under the guise of forgetting them when he and Winter ‘hung out’. Yet another thing that Ruby did _not_ want to think too hard on. Meanwhile, Blake and Yang had met up with Ren and Nora for a high reward mission in northern Mistral, slaughtering droves of Death Stalkers that had been inching their way closer to outlying towns.

Ruby drummed her fingers on Crescent Rose’s blade, momentarily wishing that she was with them. She just had too much energy and was debating whether to take a walk around the neighborhood when the mail truck pulled to a stop along the sidewalk.

Sable hopped out looking flustered, tail lower between their legs. “Hey, Ruby,” they greeted, walking toward her with a bulky package in their arms. “Sorry I’m late. There were just so many deliveries today that we didn’t have room for your package and I figured that I may as well save your mail until I drop this off too.” Sable gave a shy smile, as they offered Ruby the box. “Says it’s from Taiyang,” the Faunus reported, “Your dad, right?”

“Yep,” Ruby said cheerfully, already slicing into said box. Sable just stood by, rocking back and forth on their heels as Ruby tore into her father’s gift. She tossed some protective wrap to the side and a handful of pictures emerged, making her heart clench.

They were old ones, pictures of her and Yang when they were tiny, together with their father, mother and sometimes Uncle Qrow. Ruby’s head swam as she took in pictures of her bundled up in her mother’s cloak, her father showing Yang a proper fighting stance, a shot of her and Yang on Qrow’s lap, him looking rather disgruntled by the situation. Her hands quivered and a firm grip caught her shoulder.

“Ruby,” Sable said softly, “Are you alright?” The Faunus’ tone was filled with genuine concern.

She shook her head, carefully placing the framed pictures back in the box and pushing it off to the side. An arm slipped around her shoulder and Sable held onto her. “What’s wrong?”

“I-” she tried speaking, but her throat closed. She sat, Sable going with her. Ruby swallowed a few times and whispered, “I haven’t seen any of those since Mom died. They used to be all over the house.” Her voice was scratchy and hoarse. “I can barely remember most of what happened when they were taken and it… It’s so weird seeing it all again, after so many years later. Most days I can’t even remember what my mom looked like or how she sounded.”

Sable rubbed her upper arm, “I know, Ruby, I know.”

“Do you?” she asked softly. “Or are you just offering meaningless comfort? Because that’s what it normally is.” There was no anger, no accusation, just honest questioning.

“Sort of, though mine haven’t been gone as long,” Sable murmured. “I never knew my mom. She left me with my grandparents because my dad was a deadbeat and it hurt them to even talk about her. They raised me like I was their own, like they’d been given a chance to do better. Maybe not push me away like they did her.

“Pa worked from two in the morning to two in the afternoon to keep us fed and Gran took over the ranch. If they hadn’t had so much sunk into it, they might’ve just sold it to help make ends meet. But if it kept me in a school that accepted Faunus, they would do it.” The shepherd rubbed their temples.

“Pa had a heart attack when I was thirteen; doctors said stress. Gran passed away six months later; everyone said it was from a broken heart.” Sable looked bitter, “All to educate some bastard half-breed.”

Ruby looked up from her lap, startled.

“My mom’s family was human,” they explained. “But they never, ever treated me like less because of it.”

She founded herself slipping an arm around Sable’s waist in return. “I’m sorry.”

“Nothing to feel sorry about,” Sable said earnestly, their earlier pain ebbing away. “Life… life is what it is sometimes, be it good or bad.” They smiled, “And it’s not like they did all that for nothing. This is just a day job; I’m taking night classes, working my way toward an agriculture business degree. And when I’ve got all my ducks in a row, I’ll buy back their ranch, scatter their ashes there and start my own life there, just like they always hoped.” Sable winked, “And then some.”

Ruby smiled slowly, tears finally finished. “I’m glad, Sable. And thanks, thanks for talking with me like that. I really needed it.” She stopped, reddened and looked at them for a long moment.

“Uh, is there something on my face,” Sable asked.

“Actually I was waiting for you and now I feel kinda silly for wanting to ask,” Ruby admitted.

The Faunus smiled faintly, “Considering what we just talked about, I think we could use something trivial.”

The Huntress rubbed the back of her neck, “Well, there’s kinda this thing with my friends. Yang said something and Weiss said something and it-” Sable had arched an eyebrow. “Okay, point is that we don’t know if you’re a man or a woman and I am so sorry if that sounds mean.”

A smile touched Sable’s lips, “Glad to hear it, actually.”

“Wait, what now?” Ruby asked, turning to stare at them.

Sable stood smoothly, stretching their arms over their head, “I’m non-binary. The fact that none of you, even your Faunus friend, can tell for sure is a sign of the scents working and my binder doing its job.” Sable grinned, “Neutral pronouns, please.”

Ruby just smiled back, “No problem.”

~

When Weiss officially came out in her second year, a reporter having captured her and Coco in a lip lock, her father immediately released a statement declaring that he supported his daughter without reservation and, with a dose of humor reserved entirely for the public, said that he was eager to meet the young woman that Weiss was dating. In private he scolded her lack of discretion and choice of significant other, regardless of her gender. Of course, he was stunned silent when she actually introduced him to Coco.

They only dated a short three months, but Weiss would always treasure the moment her now ex-girlfriend had looked her father up and down like some sort of half pint Beowolf that she could crush under her heel when he inquired whether she was using Weiss’s name and laughed as if he’d told a grand joke. Coco had quickly followed the bark of laughter by saying that their last name was not nearly as impressive as his opinion of it. To this day Weiss was unsure whether he had approved of or abhorred her, because he never pestered either of them about their relationship again.

It had been a surprise when he introduced her to Olive.

Olive, of course, was old money, elegant, and charming- to the public eye, at least. The moment her father left them alone, the dusky skinned woman leaned over and said that she knew a hall leading toward the bathroom that could also take them out to the gardens and would Weiss mind joining her in a break from all the stuffiness? The heiress hadn’t hesitated to follow; she did, after all, have Myrtenaster in case it was a kidnapping ploy or murder attempt.

Naturally, it was neither of the above. The moment Olive was out of society’s eye, she turned into an easygoing nerd, all silly smiles, self-deprecating jokes and broad hand gestures. When she asked Weiss about being a Huntress, her questions were specific and earnest. She had been equally enthusiastic when asked in turn about her job: writing. As far as most people knew, she wrote society news columns, but under a rather cliché pseudonym she wrote graphic mystery novels with steamy romance scenes.

Olive’s shy grin when she asked for her contact information had sent Weiss’s heart racing.

Not quite so much as when she returned home from Atlas to see Blake pacing up and down the room, scowling as Olive was crowded between Ruby and Yang on the couch.

“What,” Weiss asked loudly, “is going on here?” She abandoned her suitcase at the door, reaching out to Olive, whose face was angled toward her lap.

Blake’s pacing came to an immediate halt, face flushed either from anger or embarrassment while the two sisters inched aside to give Olive some breathing room. Her expression when she looked up from the scroll in her lap was one of glee. “Weiss,” she said, “Your roommates are the coolest.”

The heiress blinked a few times, looking confused, “So why does Blake look ready to tear someone apart.”

Now Olive flushed, “Well, she’s rather fond of my _Midnight Watch_ series so I offered a few hints in regards to the next book. She was… she’s not happy about Midnight sticking with a love interest.”

The Faunus gave a shrug that somehow came off as violent. “I always thought he was aromantic,” she was obviously trying to sound neutral, but came off as a little peeved.

“And she was giving a neat list of reasons to make him so. I think she might have me,” Olive admitted. Blake’s face lit, but Olive jabbed a finger in her direction, “I will accept that, because I really like the idea now, but Stella is staying. She’s fun to write and their relationship can be queerplatonic.”

Blake nodded, “I like Stella, honestly. Just don’t make them the end-all romantic couple.”

Weiss glanced between Ruby and Yang, “And why are those two so cool?”

“Well,” the writer drawled, “I have an assassin character coming in and I need them to be heavily armed without being any less stealthy; they were designing weapons.” She waved her scroll, “Ruby actually drew out a few rudimentary designs that I really like. I think I’ll have to get them into the cover art.”

The conversation slipped into Ruby’s weapon designing and Olive’s general plot ideas, Yang tossing in her two cents like she was talking about a friend’s short story rather than a bestselling author’s modus operandi. It was all incredibly easy.

She couldn’t stay for dinner, since she needed to get to a meeting with her publisher, but she hugged Yang and Ruby goodbye, managing a firm handshake with Blake, who looked like she wanted to fangirl.

At the front door, Weiss attempted to apologize for any irritation they may have caused. Olive caught Weiss’s hands in her own. “I was serious, Weiss,” she said. “They’re amazing. I’m so glad that you have friends like them.” But there was something in her eyes, something sad. “Maybe next time one of them gets in trouble, I won’t feel so bad when you cancel on me.”

Another attempt at apologizing for said cancellations was brushed off. “Just invite me with you, next time,” Olive said, pressing a light kiss to Weiss’s mouth. “I wouldn’t mind visiting Yang in the hospital or helping out after one of Blake’s rallies.”

“I’d like that too,” Weiss said, sealing the statement with another kiss.

~

“What did you think,” Yang asked the moment the couple stepped outside.

Ruby looked at the door thoughtfully, silver eyes so intent one might think she could see them through it, “Weiss seemed awfully worried about her, like she was afraid of how we’d treat her.”

“Yang did tease her,” Blake pointed out. “And one of the first things you did was show off Crescent Rose like some sort of jealous girlfriend.”

Yang laughed and Ruby scowled, “I was going for protective sister.”

The blonde laughed again, “And that lasted for what? Two minutes? Three at best.”

Ruby looked at her feet, “She was nice. And she complimented my sweetheart. I’m allowed to trust a good first impression.”

“What about you, Blake?”

Her ears twitched, likely overhearing- intentionally or unintentionally- Weiss and Olive’s conversation. “By herself, I like her. Good writer, nice woman, open minded. But,” and there it was, the inevitable conditional, “I’m not sure I like how Weiss is around her.”

The other two stared and Blake explained, “She’s so… complacent, ready to accept what Olive says. She’s not as bold with her opinions. And did you notice how much she avoided touching us?”

“Have you met Weiss?” Yang asked disbelievingly.

“No, she’s right,” Ruby said. “She never goes out of her way to touch us, but she never avoids us either.”

Yang nodded at that, “Point. But is it really so weird that she doesn’t want to cuddle up with us while her girlfriend’s in the room?”

“She had no problem with it when she was with Coco,” Blake pointed out.

“Coco has no sense of personal space,” Yang protested. “She greets her friends with a slap on the ass or a kiss on the cheek!”

Any further debate was silenced by Weiss’s reentry. Her face was flushed, mouth pulled into a sweet half smile that she quickly tried to smother; she was half successful. “So,” she asked sardonically, “Does my girlfriend meet your standards?” As per usual, she managed sound flippant with a serious question.

Ruby readily declared Olive ‘awesome’. Blake agreed more neutrally. Yang just said, “Are you sure she’s gay? She didn’t look down once.”

“Trust me,” Weiss deadpanned, “She’s gay,” And promptly regretted even acknowledging Yang’s existence. She didn’t hear the end of that for the rest of the night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope Olive and Sable were tolerable.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Canon is getting murkier... If mentions of the past are confusing, it's because I'm trying not to give a definite 'this is what happened'.

“Holy shit,” Yang whispered, staring down at the box.

Ruby had waited until the other two were out to show Yang their father’s gift, thinking that her sister might need time to process, much like she had. There they stood in their room, hovering over the box on Ruby’s bed. “It came the other day; I wasn’t sure what to do with them.” She watched as Yang slowly reached out, picking up a picture with Summer running a comb through Yang’s hair, a smile on her lips. Yang had her hands tossed in the air, mouth wide open as she theatrically relayed one thought or another. Ruby herself was in the background, a knuckle stuck in her mouth as she watched the two.

She wished she could remember this.

Neither of them had seen many pictures of Summer, not as an adult. Qrow always kept a few around, so they would know what she looked like, even if he seemed to have as hard a time seeing her as their father. Of course, right now Yang was thinking of someone else entirely.

“Do you think that mom thought of me as hers?” Yang asked, her thumb swiping over her stepmother’s face. “Or do you think I was always Raven’s daughter?”

“I don’t know,” Ruby said softly, inching toward her. “I don’t remember her well enough to know how she acted. I’d like to think that she did.” Her fingers wrapped around Yang’s biceps and when her sister- half-sister, she thought distantly- didn’t react, she hugged her around the middle, head on her shoulder. “Have you spoken to her- Raven?”

A strong arm tugged Ruby closer, “Not since we graduated. I told her that when I wanted to talk to her, I would find her.”

“It’s been nearly six months,” she said. “I get it, if you’re still mad at her; she did drop an awful lot on you. Abandoned you and Dad and Uncle Qrow. She pulled you away from us, made you hesitate to talk to us when you needed to. I know she had her reasons, but it wasn’t fair to you.”

“I’m not mad about the second thing.”

Ruby looked up.

“I mean, I’ll always wonder what it would’ve been like to grow up with her, with a mom,” Yang admitted. “And I wish she could have at least told me that she was alive and cared. But,” she crushed her sister closer and pressed a kiss to the top of her head, “I could never trade you for her. I don’t think I’d be the same person without you.” She let go for a brief moment, setting the picture down to survey the rest. “Would you be okay with putting a few of these up?”

“Of course,” Ruby said, plunking herself down on the bed. “Take your pick. Might wanna get new frames for some of them; they look kinda rough.”

“Sounds like a plan.”

They spent the rest of the morning side by side, digging through the box, Yang occasionally offering a story when she remembered what was going on. She pointed out one, the picture of Taiyang first teaching her to fight and recalled her first bloodied knuckles; their dad had been proud and their mom… less than amused with him and his lack of gloves. There was another, one of Summer pecking their father on the cheek and Ruby making a disgusted face from her father’s shoulders; Yang claimed that Ruby had whined about their gross parents all day, until Yang reached over and planted a kiss on Ruby’s cheek, prompting the younger girl to run screaming to the bathroom.

Ruby listened intently the whole time, eyes on Yang’s face as she conveyed each tale with childlike enthusiasm so much like that first picture with her and Summer. Both were a little disappointed when they finally ran out of pictures, though each now had a handful that they definitely wanted to reframe and put up.

But the silence was deafening, neither quite knowing what to say after all the memories, including stories that came later, one’s that they both recalled.

“Do you think-” Ruby stopped, clearing her throat. “Do you think that Dad kept any? Or did he just send them all to us?”

Yang trailed her fingers along the edge of the box. “I don’t remember any other pictures in the house. This is probably all of them.” Her voice was sad, “I think he’d just lost too much at that point.”

Curious, but hesitant, Ruby asked, “Do you know if _she_ has spoken to Dad at all?”

“Speaking isn’t really the right word there,” Yang managed, sounding somewhere between laughing and crying. “Once everything was said and done, he didn’t want any more to do with her. And Qrow told me that, happy as he was that his twin was still alive, he’s pretty sick of her shit. They’re having a hard time, learning how to be family again.”

“But they will be,” Ruby said softly.

Yang looked mildly amused, “What makes you say that? He thought she was dead and she just let him. I don’t know about you, but I’d be pretty pissed if you pulled that on me.”

Ruby smiled, “I wouldn’t be happy either, but they’ve got to be the two most stubborn people on the planet, Yang. If they want to work it out, they will.”

“You say ‘work it out’,” Yang said, “But I see a _lot_ of fighting in the future.”

“Uncle Qrow never did learn how to use his words,” Ruby agreed.

“Neither did Raven,” her sister deadpanned.

They shared a few morbid giggles before sobering up, leaning against each other. “Do you know where Raven is?” Ruby asked in a near whisper, “Or at least how to get a hold of her?”

Yang sighed, “I do, but I’m not sure that I’m ready yet. There’s so much I want to say to her, so much that I want to ask her, but every time I start thinking about it, I just get angry or sad and I hate that,” she said, sounding a little childish. “It’ll be an emotional conversation, I know we already had that screaming match over why she left, but I don’t want to say anything that I’ll regret. And I’m not sure that I’ll like what she tells me.”

“I could go with you,” Ruby offered. “I know that it’s not really my place,” she added, “But I know you. I know when something will set you off and I can make sure that you don’t say something…” At Yang’s blank expression, she hastily added, “Or not, it could be a really bad idea, I just want you to know that I’m here for you. All four of us are,” she rambled.

“I know,” Yang said softly, leaning down to rest her forehead against Ruby’s, arms around her shoulders. “And I think it’s a good idea.”

“Really,” Ruby asked skeptically, leaning back to search her sister’s expression.

Yang nodded, “Really. But maybe instead of us tracking her down, we could just… invite her here- on our own terms.” She seemed to be speaking to herself as she continued, “Yeah. Then we don’t have to run half way around the world for a conversation that might go really bad, I’ve got you guys here, and we can legally kick her out if she pisses me off.” Yang nodded again, “I like that idea.”

“Well, let’s talk to the others, get the okay and you can get a hold of her when you think you’re ready,” Ruby said. “In case you want to think about this more.”

The blonde fiddled with a bit of hair, coming down from her excitement rather quickly, “Thing is, I don’t think that I’ll be ready for a while. But I don’t want her to think that I just don’t want to talk to her, you know?”

Ruby shrugged up to her ears, and Yang couldn’t help the way her lips curled up at her sister’s expression. “Then just contact her; let her know that you’re okay and, even if you’re not ready to sit down and talk, one of these days you will.”

Slowly, Yang nodded. “Yeah, I think I could do that. But I have no idea what to say; I hardly know her.”

“She’s your mom, Yang.” Ruby’s words startled her. “I know that she didn’t raise you, but I know that she cares. If she doesn’t learn to love you…” Ruby trailed off, simply pressing close again. “Well, who wouldn’t?”

Yang said nothing, just held on, enjoying the distinct warmth in her stomach. Even if she never grew close to Raven, or if her father stayed distant, she would always have Ruby.

~

Antisocial as Blake was known to be, there were some people she could always make time for. Lately it had been her roommates, but today it was Sun.

There was something surreal about sitting across from him at an outdoor café, watching him hold a mug of coffee with his tail while he waved his hands around, describing his last job. Apparently, he had been guarding a scientist who wanted to observe the regular wildlife outside of Mistral and needed a few guards to make sure that she didn’t get eaten. Blake, and Sun himself, honestly wasn’t too sure why _his_ group of all people had come recommended, but they had done it and now Sun had some of the best stories about various nerds- that weren’t Neptune, for once- attempting to rough it.

He had just finished a particularly mortifying one about the young man that had been treed for several hours by a massive bear, which Sun had to rescue him from, that turned out to be an herbivore. The lead scientist sent him home that night.

“How is it that you always come back with funny stories and I end up with Yang in the hospital and getting the sad eyes from Ruby or me in the hospital and getting yelled at by Weiss?” Blake wondered.

Sun leaned back in his seat, arms behind his head, unbuttoned shirt distracting the occasional passersby, female and male alike. “Your team is crazy, Blake,” he said simply. “We know when to let something go; you girls have always gone the extra mile to get the job done. Losing sleep, screaming matches and hospital trips are kind of a requirement with you four.”

“I wish I could argue that,” Blake said with a faint smile, taking a drink of her long neglected tea. Say what you like about the monkey Faunus, but he was a good storyteller.

He grinned back, sitting himself upright, “So how’s it been, living with them? By the time my team was out of Haven, we were ready to strangle each other, not rent one big house to share.”

“It’s been nice,” she replied simply.

Sun waved a hand, urging her on, “Even with the Ice Queen?”

“You know she’s not like that,” Blake said.

“I know, I know,” he said rolling his eyes. “But she never did like me.”

Blake smirked over her mug, “You’re something of an acquired taste.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment,” he countered, “But seriously, how do you stand living with three other people, after living with them four years before that? If I still had to share a bathroom with Scarlet, I would crack.”

“We just know each other,” Blake told him. “We all know to avoid the bathroom once Weiss is in there, to make sure that Yang unclogs the shower drain, who will be making the meals and cleaning up, when it’s okay to tease someone and when we need to leave them alone. It’s the little things.” She tapped the mug with a nail, “Honestly, before Weiss moved in, there was a kind of gap.”

The man grinned, “A small, chilly, heiress shaped gap?”

“We were all a little off without her,” she admitted. “Ruby missed her partner, Yang was getting tired of being brushed off by me or feeling bad about bothering Ruby when she was bored and I forgot how nice it was just to have another person who liked the peace.” Her expression was sardonic, “And no one knows how to cook.”

Sun shook his head, “Do you guys have _any_ social life outside each other?”

Blake did have to think about that and Sun laughed into his drink. “Well, we see Ren and Nora whenever they’re in town. They love jobs that require adventure and risk, so they’re gone an awful lot. Weiss’s girlfriend drops by and she’s interesting. Jaune’s been doing a lot of tactical study when he’s not out on jobs, but we see Pyrrha often enough; those two are living together now,” she added thoughtfully.

“Wait,” Sun cut in, hands slamming down on the table, “They _finally_ got their act together?”

“No,” she snorted. “I lost fifty lien on her not laying one on him at graduation and they’re still dancing around it. Maybe they missed their window.”

The monkey Faunus smiled, looking just a bit sad, “We would know about that, huh?”

After the Vytal Festival, he’d had to return to Haven. After all the time spent and flirting and Blake honestly considering doing something, their opportunity was lost. She hadn’t withdrawn or felt heartbroken, but she would always wonder whether they could’ve been it for each other. They’d spoken long after, sure, and they spent time together at the next Festival, but the spark between them had died, instead allowing them to settle into an easy, if somewhat odd, friendship.

“We would.”

But he nudged her under the table, “You had any luck since?”

“Not any more than you,” she said lightly.

Sun rolled his eyes, “I’ll have you know that I’ve had plenty of luck… it’s just they’re mostly short term.”

“I don’t want to know,” Blake said immediately. “I really don’t.”

“I say mostly,” he continued, as if she’d never spoken, “Because I’ve been talking to that head scientist since the job was over.” At this Blake sat up slightly, tenting her fingers. “I knew you’d be interested in that,” Sun said with a smirk, “You’re such a romantic.” When she only glared, he went on, “Well, we argued like Yang and Ice Queen- she’s a little uptight- but we were in the middle of nowhere and I wasn’t gonna leave them there to get eaten, so we dealt with each other.

“Hated talking to her, hated looking over her shoulder, hated being near her,” he said, “But she’s sharp, like you, had a comeback for _everything_ without even playing the Faunus card. It turned into a game: who’s the bigger smartass? It was pretty even, with me slightly ahead of her.”

“I’m sure,” Blake cut in.

He proceeded to ignore her, “Once we could pick on each other without taking it seriously, we were on pretty good terms even if we talked like we were two seconds from killing each other. Of course, when I rescued the dumbass in a tree, he wasn’t too grateful; thought it was some sort of insult, being rescued by a Faunus and let loose all the racist slurs he’d picked up. I didn’t give a shit, because who cares what that guy thinks,” Sun added, “But Vi _was not_ happy with him. She might’ve let him stay otherwise, cause that bear was pretty damn huge.

“I dragged her to the side and told her not to worry about me and she told me that she did and if she wanted to kick this racist asshole out, she would.” Sun smiled, “And things got better from there. We still argue all the time, but hey, it’s fun.”

Blake arched an eyebrow, “I’m sure it is.”

The blonde’s smile grew into a wicked smirk, “You’re thinking about the makeup sex.”

“Of course not,” Blake said, straightening her back and putting on a prim air. “What kind of person do you think I am?”

“The kind that keeps books like _Ninjas of Love_ under her bed for long nights,” he shot back.

A surprisingly small number of people looked up when she put Sun in a headlock until he took it back.

~

The cat Faunus didn’t even blink at the three piled up on the couch’s pullout bed. Yang in the middle, with Ruby half on top of her- likely in order to get an arm over Weiss, who lay on Yang’s other side, locked into place by Yang’s arm around her waist; she looked completely and utterly resigned with her position in life. The TV was going, some old cartoon that only the sisters seemed to show any interest in.

“So, why the impromptu snuggle pile?” she asked, hanging up her coat and ambling over. There was some shuffling and an indignant squeak from Weiss who did not manage to escape and then there was a space to the heiress’s right. Blake was sure to get her arm over Weiss as she curled up with them.

Ruby was the one to answer, pulling her face out of Yang’s hair, “Because family is difficult and complicated and all of us are running kind of low and don’t know how to deal with some of them.”

Weiss and Yang both stiffened, but made no comment, probably because Ruby wasn’t wrong. Blake just hummed in agreement.

She knew that Taiyang still wasn’t speaking to Raven. Qrow and Raven had their own issues to work through. Raven could hardly look at Ruby, but never said why, something that irritated Yang to no end. Blake wondered if Ruby was still upset that no one told her that she and Yang were half-sisters.

On Weiss’s end, she and her father were barely civil; any conversation could erupt into an argument over one thing or another: her work at the company, the time she took away from the company, the conditions of the Faunus workers, her living with a Faunus, her living in Vale with three women, and so on. Blake knew that Weiss was the only connection left between Winter and their father, though she had no clue whether it was possible, or even worth trying to reconcile them.

Evidently, twenty-eight years of being the slightly better child was easily destroyed by sharing a public and private acquaintance with a known drunk and opponent of the Atlas military. From what Blake had gathered, it didn’t matter that Qrow was nearly twice her age, constantly picking fights with her, or a near suicidal Huntsman. Those were no problem, but his reputation was toxic. To be honest, Blake was surprised when Winter had stood up for her- whatever Qrow was to her and walked away. Weiss had been at a loss for words. Qrow even more so.

And Blake herself just didn’t have family. She couldn’t remember anyone but Adam as she was shifted through various homes of White Fang members who had the resources to take care of unwanted children.

The Faunus sighed softly, resting her chin on the top of Weiss’s head, “We deal with each other well enough, so there’s that.”

“We could do worse,” Weiss agreed, her fingers curling over the hand Blake had rested on her shoulder.

“Well, _I_ don’t think it gets much better than this,” Yang stated. They left it at that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed the fluff.
> 
> And, seriously, if you have an idea- any idea- of something you want to see happen, let me know because I'm running out of chapters and I'm in a creative dry spell.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In memory of Monty Oum. Thank you so much for the inspiration, thrills, laughs and tears.

Weiss wasn’t used to finding a quiet corner to hide in, with her hair tucked up into a hat and her scar carefully hidden. She could feel her brow twitching even as she thought of it- too distinctive to leave uncovered in such a potentially… tumultuous environment. The other three had tried to talk her out of it, knowing how insecure she had once been about it. But a Faunus rights rally wasn’t a good place to be a Schnee as she had once learned the hard way.

Now her temple ached in memory of that water bottle. It had been a miracle that Yang hadn’t caused a human-Faunus incident. Two miracles named Ruby and Blake, to be exact.

These thoughts weren’t making her much happier though. And neither was the buzz of conversation over light music. As much as Weiss hated her father parading her around, she enjoyed meeting new people and chatting, maybe even making a tentative acquaintance. Her shoulders slumped a bit and she brushed the thoughts aside. She was here to support Blake in her first contribution to the organization and to make sure no violence occurred.

In which case, she should probably come up with a schedule for the next time they all tried to leave the house at once. As always, she would have to get up first and make breakfast- to this day she had no idea how the three of them hadn’t starved without her. Two of them would have to shower the night before. Most likely Yang and herself, as they took the longest. Ruby could not have ‘five more minutes’ and Blake wasn’t allowed to run around the house looking for something she thought she’d forgotten.

Planning was soothing and simple. Even if timing couldn’t be exact, at least it could be close and there would be an order to things.

“You look deep in thought,” someone said softly.

Weiss jumped.

An orange-haired grinned down at her, tattooed arms crossed over an impressive chest. She wore over-sized sunglasses and an unnecessary amount of makeup. “Some Huntress you are,” the woman continued to tease. “My boys probably could have snuck up on you.”

The heiress flushed red, raising one finger to scold for an offense that Weiss had yet to decide on.

She pulled her glasses down and a pair of green eyes held hers. “We businesswomen need to be on top of things, you know.”

“Miss Firebird,” Weiss hissed, her sense of decorum the only thing keeping her from exclaiming. She couldn’t help but add, “Former businesswoman, in your case.”

The older woman gave a sardonic smile. “Indeed, Miss Schnee,” Firebird replied, returning her glasses to their original place and settling beside Weiss. “I didn’t expect to see you of all people.”

Weiss’s mouth twisted in a half-smile half-grimace. “We can both agree that my father is wrong on some points,” she said delicately.

“Is that why you think I quit doing business?”

“I never implied that, Miss Firebird,” Weiss countered, “Only that Schnee Dust has ideals that neither of us necessarily agree with whether or not they overlap.”

She groaned loudly. “I forgot how much I fucking hated dealing with SDC people.” Weiss gaped, but she didn’t stop. “Just call me Dahlia. I’m here because I want to be able to marry my partner and have our children legally recognized outside of Vacuo. Why are you here?”

Weiss stared at her for a while, wondering if this was the first time she’d actually _met_ the woman. She’d been perfectly polite and conservative at the few events she’d been to. And then she took over Phoenix Ammunitions. Though she didn’t know all the details, she knew that her father ended up cutting all ties with Phoenix until Dahlia’s younger brother was handed the company, with Dahlia well out of the picture.

“Because,” Weiss murmured, “I want you to be able to do those things. I want one of my best friends to be able to do whatever she wants, to marry who she wants, to walk down the street without being insulted or watched like she’s going to attack someone.”

Firebird smiled slowly, “I was wondering why you hadn’t followed in your sister’s footsteps and disavowed the whole thing.”

Two neat brows went up, “Why haven’t I?”

“And you’re doing it again,” she said with a long sigh. “I’m not here to pry secrets out of you. I’m trying to do that person-to-person bonding thing that girls who didn’t grow up rich and proud and ignorant do.”

Weiss couldn’t help laughing at that. “I have no experience in that area,” she replied sardonically, “And my teammates… really aren’t much better.”

“Neither were any of mine,” the older Huntress admitted.

It became almost easy, trading stories of hunting and Beacon and dysfunctional families. Almost.

Dahlia was still twice her age and settled down, with goals and experience and a family of her own. The way she talked about her for-all-intents-and-purposes husband and two sons made Weiss wonder. Could she have that? A wife, children, hunting- and if she played her cards more carefully than Dahlia- a job with her grandfather’s company. The lines at the corners of Dahlia’s eyes promised that it would be tiring. The smile as she spoke also said that it would be worth it.

It was certainly something to think about.

~

Blake pressed her forehead into the wall, breathing slow and deep. There were so many people, everything was so loud, protestors were outside with signs, shouting slurs. It was only the din of the room that kept a majority of the guests unaware of the brewing trouble. Of the possible violence. Of the potential that the White Fang was outside or had even slipped in at one point.

Her breathing hitched and she shook slightly. A speaker hadn’t shown up, a catering group that volunteered backed out at the last second and Miss Corvali was definitely growing anxious no matter how many times she reassured Blake that everything would be okay.

Everything was going to shit and her friends were right in the middle of it all.

“Blake.”

She nearly jumped out of her skin, whirling around to look at Ruby, watching her from the bathroom door. “I’m fine.”

Ruby smiled, “No, you’re not.” And closed the distance, tugging Blake down into a hug. “You don’t have to be fine,” she told her, “Not all the time. Especially not now.” Hands so quick to pull triggers and swing a scythe heavier than herself were gentle on Blake’s shoulders and hair.

Blake didn’t realize that she had started crying until Ruby was wiping away her silent tears with her cloak. Ruby made a face at her, mouth pulling into something of a pout. She held up a finger in a ‘one second’ gesture and grabbed some paper towels that she wet lightly and then returned to wiping at Blake’s face. “Your make-up is smudging,” she muttered in dismay.

At that Blake laughed, taking the paper towels from Ruby and heading for the nearest mirror. Ruby stayed close as she cleaned herself up, the red slowly leaving her eyes as she wiped away eyeliner and eyeshadow and blush. “Hopefully I won’t look like too much of a mess,” she said, trying to keep her tone light. The insecurity came through regardless.

“You look strong, Blake.”

Blake swallowed a lump in her throat and shook her head.

“And you’re not alone.”

“I know.”

Ruby made another face, “Then don’t try to do these things alone. Talk to me. Ask Yang for a hug. Go… I don’t know, ask Weiss all the reasons those jerks outside are wrong and how many minds you can change. Last night she talked and paced for hours, telling Olive how much good you were going to do. I know we don’t _have_ to be a team anymore and I know that I could never order you around. But we’re still here for you.”

Blake mimicked Ruby’s earlier actions, pressing her forehead against her younger friend’s. “I keep forgetting how good you are at taking care of people,” she said quietly. “What happened to that little girl who could barely stand up to Weiss?”

“It started with eight kids in over their heads, a Deathstalker and a Nevermore,” Ruby said sagely.

She stared at her for a beat. “Ruby-”

The pounding on the door startled them both. “Blake, are you in there?”

“Yes, Miss Corvali,” she replied, withdrawing from Ruby and tossing her previous thought out of her mind.

“An angry blonde acquaintance of ours took care of those protestors. Don’t ask how she did it because we need plausible deniability.”

Ruby grinned, “See. Not alone.”

There was a long pause. “No fooling around on my time, Belladonna. You’ve got one minute to be back out on the floor with your shit together.”

~

“I’m glad you could make it, Sable, I know that you have a busy schedule,” Yang said, hugging the Faunus briefly.

They smiled in turn, giving her a firm squeeze, “Glad you told me about it- I haven’t spent this long outside of my truck or away from a book since the beginning of the semester. See you tomorrow?”

Yang grinned, “Probably. Later!” She waved as they headed out. Their eyes darted slightly to her left and they smiled more brightly as they slipped out the front door. Yang turned slightly and her smile only got broader. “Ruby! Where’ve you been? Is Blake alright?”

Ruby gave her a suspicious look, “Blake’s fine, but I’m more curious about where you’ve been.”

“Hanging out with Sable?”

Her younger sister folded her arms across her chest. “Uh-huh.”

“No, seriously Ruby, what?” She asked, not bothering to look over her shoulder as another person entered.

Ruby pouted, “Fine, don’t tell me.” And she stalked off in mock offense.

“What’s her problem?”

“Likely you, Miss Xiao Long.”

Yang nearly leapt out of her skin at the familiar voice. “I didn’t do it!”

“What the hell did you do at that school? Every time, it’s like they have PTSD.” A different voice muttered.

Yang turned slowly, facing a slightly disheveled Glynda Goodwitch and a Faunus companion. “Hi, Professor Goodwitch,” she greeted awkwardly.

The Faunus, an olive-skinned woman with silvery hair, raised her eyebrows. “Every. Time,” she repeated, raccoon tail twitching behind her.

Goodwitch pushed her shoulders back primly, “I instilled a certain amount of respect in my students.”

“You could call it that,” Yang agreed. The Faunus chuckled and Goodwitch rolled her eyes. “What brings you here Prof- Miss- Goodwitch?”

“There was a bit of trouble,” she replied curtly. “I took care of it. Sylph,” she nodded to her companion, “Convinced me that we may as well support an old friend while we’re here.” She dipped her head to Yang and continued on her way.

The Faunus paused, hissing to Yang, “I think she forgot how to socialize since she quit teaching.”

“I heard that.”

“Good!” She winked at Yang and hurried after Goodwitch.

Yang stared after the two for a moment. She shook her head. Weird ass day.

~

Blake didn’t drink. She hated what it did to people, to her own mind and, more than anything, she hated the taste. But she took a few polite sips of her margarita as the rest of the HFA toasted a to mostly-peaceful rally and a quiet weekend. Miss Corvali had promised that it would be her treat for all of the organizers, but she hadn’t been allowed to pay a cent; a raccoon Faunus and a loud woman with orange hair had footed the bill.

After a long day of socializing, Blake was exhausted. She murmured a good-evening to Miss Corvali and her friends and made for the door. She passed a familiar face.

A dusky skinned woman with green eyes.

She and Olive locked eyes as the latter entered with bar with a cluster of noisy women their age. It was a short glance, one that conveyed Olive’s surprise and immediate embarrassment.

So much for being unable to come to the rally.

Personally, Blake didn’t care, but she’d told Weiss that she would have loved to be there, she just wasn’t feeling too well today. Blake shook her head. She had no fucking clue what to do with this information.

The door hadn’t finished closing before Olive was back out, “Blake!”

Her pace slowed, but she didn’t stop walking to her car.

“I… I’m not brave enough. I’m sorry I missed it. If… If you want to tell Weiss…”

There was a loud creak, “Hey, Olive, what’s the matter?”

“…nothing. Having a smoke.”

She didn’t say another word as Blake slipped into her car.

Blake could see the shame in her expression as she drew a pack of cigarettes from her purse and lit up with a friend. She shook her head again, feeling her ears flatten instinctively. This wasn’t her business. This was between Weiss and Olive.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have no excuse for my lateness other than sheer writer's block. Still taking ideas (I mean it, please, throw something my way). Also, I Tumblr now... kind of. I haven't posted shit. Feel free to ask for head canons, requests or imagines. Can't promise that I'll get to all of them- assuming that there are any, but I'll at least try!
> 
> magpieswriting.tumblr.com


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can't do regular. It's in the tags now as a warning.
> 
> On another note, yes Weiss and Olive are sinking but for now there is other drama to be had.

“Alright,” Ruby called, upstairs, “Team/family/housemate meeting, in the kitchen, right now.”

Weiss had a sense of foreboding as she rose from her bed, closing her scroll. It was Tuesday, she thought, what could possibly require a household meeting on a Tuesday? None of them, to her knowledge, had any jobs planned for the next few days, nothing had come in the mail, no one was visiting and any cooking lessons were regulated to weekends that Weiss was not in Atlas, so there was a very slim chance of property damage.

The scene in the kitchen was deceptively calm. Ruby sat at the ‘head’ of the table, her fingers tented, with Yang on her right, arms behind her head and one knee pressed up against the table. Blake sat on the kitchen counter, looking like she was going to enjoy this.

“Take a seat,” Ruby said graciously.

Hesitant and watchful, Weiss took the seat opposite Ruby.

“So,” Ruby started, “We’ve been living here nearly four months now and no one wants to leave, right?” She looked around the room, getting only shaken heads. “Good,” she said, looking content. “Since we’re all settled in and have no intention of leaving, I figured we could take the next step.”

Weiss glanced over at Blake, a look of alarm on her face. The Faunus was hiding it behind her fist, but Weiss knew that she was grinning and promptly eased up: there was no polyamorous relationship that she was being let in on- most likely.

“Pets,” Ruby announced. “The landlord told us that we could have either two small animals or a dog.”

“No dogs,” Blake said immediately.

“I’m not sure how I feel about owning a cat,” Yang added, eyeing Blake.

“Reptiles are completely out of the question,” Weiss told her.

With each refusal, Ruby slumped. “What about-”

“Absolutely no rodents,” Weiss cut in.

“What if-”

Yang butt in, “I can’t stand birds. They end up in my hair every time.”

Now Ruby was half under the table, her face barely visible, “That only leaves fish.”

“Tarantula,” Weiss offered.

Every head in the room looked in her direction. Heat rose in her cheeks, “I had one when I was little. Winter got her for me and her name was Matilda.”

Blake nodded slowly, “That explains you ‘relocating’ spiders instead of killing them.”

“They’re very complex, ingenious creatures,” Weiss huffed, arms over her chest. “And they take care of the flies and other pests.”

“No,” Yang said, “Just, no.”

~

No ammunition, no weapons, and her Semblance was greatly limited by her environment; Ruby could feel the sweat beading on her brow, ready to trickle down and blind her. But she did not dare reach up to wipe it away, her opponent was too practiced and the stakes too high.

A strike came at her left, she dodged right, tossed a useless punch and leapt back, creating precious space between her and her adversary. The chill of autumn raised goose bumps on her arms and her heart slammed against her ribcage as she evaded blow after blow. She could hear shouting, no doubt a few paces from her, though it sounded like the voices were miles away: they called for her to hold on, promised that she had this.

Her body betrayed her, one hand leaving its guard to swipe away her sweat. A heavy blow met her sternum, shortly followed by a hit to the side of her knee, landing her flat on her back.

“Miss Huntress,” the children from down the street cried as their hero was tossed to the ground by her Faunus companion. Three little figures, ranging from seven to twelve years old ran to her aid, trying to pull her up on her feet, to no avail.

Blake stepped forward, offering Ruby her hand, “You’re getting better ‘Miss Huntress’.”

The cloaked woman just stared up at the sky, “Let me wallow in my failure.”

“Miss Blake is really good,” the eldest, a girl by the name of Rosemary said- she had been thrilled beyond words to know that she had even a vaguely similar name to the nice Huntress living across the street. “But you could probably beat Her Majesty.”

As usual, Yang snickered at the title, even without Weiss there to bear the name with a smile for the children’s sake. She, of course, was the one to insist that the woman in white was the Queen of Ice and should be appropriately addressed. The kids had been star struck by the idea of speaking to actual royalty and never failed to use the honorific- or bow and curtsy when she entered a room.

“You’ll get stronger, Miss Huntress,” the youngest, a boy who called himself ‘Thorn’ said. His real name was Copper, but he would do anything to be more like Ruby. They had spoken to his parents about this, worried about him (and potentially them) getting in trouble, but they had humored their son, saying that it was just a phase. “One day, you’ll be just as good as Miss Blake.”

“Not as good as Miss Yang,” the middle boy said. If Rosemary was the sweetheart and Thorn the troublemaker, Phoebus was the voice of reason. “But Miss Ruby,” he was the only one who used her actual name, “Can do just about anything she sets her mind to.”

The other two nodded with all the solemnity in the world and Yang smiled a bit. It was nice, being the heroes to a bunch of kids. They were simpler than adults, who wanted them to be perfect and have all the answers that people in reality never had. She cocked her hip and just watched for a while, Phoebus trying to convince his brother that Ruby would never match Yang in hand to hand and Rosemary fussing over Ruby, making sure that that fall hadn’t actually hurt her. Blake attempted to broker peace between the two brothers and Ruby assured Mary that she had taken _far_ worse falls.

That garnered the other two’s attention and it quickly turned into story time, with the kids on the ground around Ruby, watching her every exaggerated gesture and devouring her every word. She and Blake shared a smile. Just the other day, before their parents had confirmed the ‘play date’, the Faunus had commented on how well Ruby got along with the kids, followed by Weiss’s dry declaration that they were on the same maturity level and, with that in mind, why didn’t Yang get along with them so well?

“It’s nice seeing Ruby socialize,” Blake murmured as she fell into place beside her partner. “Even if it’s only with kids, she really should be around people more.”

Yang shrugged, “She’s always been that way. When we were little, the school councilor spouted a lot of things about social anxiety and a bunch of other bullshit, but Dad and I knew better.”

“Shy and nervous at first, but open and warm once she knows you,” Blake murmured.

“Yeah,” the blonde drawled, “But it never stopped me from worrying about her making friends.” She slipped an arm over Blake’s shoulder, drawing her close. The Faunus made a noise halfway between a hum and a purr. “Being put on this team was probably the best thing that could’ve happened to her.”

Slim, calloused fingers curled around Yang’s hip, “To any of us.” Her ears flicked purposefully. Despite Weiss’s reservations and the initial sting of betrayal, things had worked out for the best. In fact, she mused, being teamed with Weiss had likely done the two of them more good than they realized. Blake had finally accepted that the White Fang wasn’t what it once was, even as Weiss accepted that the Faunus weren’t what she had been taught they were. The last few years had seen Weiss at more Faunus rights rallies than the one from the previous week, even if she was always thinly disguised.

Not to mention, it was kinda nice to have friends that would tear down anyone that insulted her heritage- just as nice as it was embarrassing to have such a scene made over something she was so used to by now.

“Are Miss Blake and Miss Yang going to get married?” Mary asked loudly. “They cuddle just like Mama and Papa.”

“Nah,” Thorn said, not waiting for the pair in question’s input, “They’re Huntresses. They don’t do silly things like kissing and getting married.”

Yang grinned and Blake felt her stomach knot. “Huntresses can do whatever they want, right Thorn?”

Thorn grinned back and nodded vigorously, “Yeah!”

“That means we can kiss and get married if we want to,” she said, rounding on Blake and facing her head on. Blake just went limp as Yang dipped her into a mock kiss, the blonde’s mouth hovering just over her friend’s chin. She winked as three of their viewers lapsed into disgusted noises, Mary crying, ‘Aw!’

At last the two ‘surfaced’ Yang panting like she was out of breath, enjoying the faint flush on her partner’s cheeks and the mock scandalized expression on Ruby’s face; her sister had seen her do _much_ more than fake kiss. Now Yang blushed a bit. She covered it with teasing, “What’s the matter, jealous that I have Blake all to myself?” Yang held the Faunus, who looked rather amused at this point, theatrically close.

The children watched in wide eyed silence.

Ruby folded her arms over her chest, “I would be if I wasn’t her favorite!”

Yang gave a dramatic gasp, hand over her heart, “Is that true, Blake?”

“I’m pretty sure that none of us have favorites,” the Faunus deadpanned, stepping out of Yang’s grasp.

“You’re everyone else’s favorite,” Ruby protested. “You never yell at us, you clean your hair out of the shower drain,” she eyed Yang. “And you’re quiet,” she concluded, “It only makes sense.”

Blake smiled faintly, “Then can I be my own favorite?”

The kids let out a low, “ _Oh_ ,” like Blake was the wittiest person in the world.

The cloaked woman pouted, “That’s not fair.”

“Yeah, Blake,” Yang pestered, “If we have to pick-”

“You don’t _have to_ have a favorite,” Blake shot back. The three gave another, “ _Oh_.”

Both sisters slumped and Ruby grumbled, “You take the fun out of it.”

~

An hour later, their parents came around to collect them, brimming with stories to tell and new questions to ask that their parents likely wouldn’t know the answers to- and Thorn insisting that he would be a Huntress. The three girls had looked at each other, somewhere between amused and alarmed, but his parents brushed it off: he would grow out of it and figure out the correct wording, or the family would all need to sit down and have a discussion about gender. That had been a relief.

Naturally, the peace didn’t last long.

The three had sprawled out across the couch, pullout bed open, to watch a movie that Yang had insisted on seeing, when Ruby’s scroll buzzed.

She wriggled around a bit, attempting to untangle herself from her roommates and a tangle of blankets. Blake merely wedged her hand between them- Ruby yipped- and dug the offending object from Ruby’s back pocket. The woman in red took one look at the ID and accepted the call. “Uncle Qrow,” she squealed.

Yang attacked the remote, turning the TV off rather than simply pausing the movie, and squirmed so that she was looking over Ruby’s shoulder, “Hey Un-” She stopped. “You look like shit.”

Their uncle’s hair, a bit more white than last time they’d seen him, was more unruly than normal and his eyes were bloodshot. The ever present stubble had grown beyond the usual and his clothes looked like he’d put them on in the dark, necklace missing and shirt incorrectly buttoned. He appeared to be in the back seat of a dingy car.

“Yeah, yeah,” he rumbled. “So, girls, I need a place to stay. Be there in ten.” He looked up from the scroll, “Hey, driver, step on it, will yah? My nieces-” the call ended.

“Do you think his scroll died,” Ruby asked. “Or do you think he forgot he was talking to us?”

Her sister shrugged, “Could be both.”

Blake cleared her throat, drawing their attention. “He’s been staying with Weiss’s sister between jobs, hasn’t he? Why do you think he needs to stay here?”

“See,” Yang said, already starting a message on her scroll, “That’s why you’re the favorite.”

The Faunus made a bemused noise in the back of her throat, but enquired, “Who are you messaging?”

“Just asking Weiss if she’s heard anything from Winter lately,” Yang replied and hit send.

Ruby’s mouth twisted, “I suppose all we can do is wait.” She wasn’t good at waiting.

“Or we can strip the pullout bed and put on some clean sheets,” Blake offered. She was already off the bed and tugging at the blanket the sisters were sprawled across.

While Yang waited for the heiress’s response, the other two did as Blake suggested, tossing the sheets and covers in the laundry room and pulling out some fresh ones- Weiss would yell at them for leaving things lying around later. When they returned to the living room Yang was looking a little worried.

Blake urged Ruby to work as she asked, “What did Weiss say?”

“She hasn’t heard a word from Winter in a week and the last time they spoke, she was acting weird,” Yang reported. “Why didn’t she say anything to us?”

“She probably didn’t want to worry us about nothing,” Ruby told her, tucking the sheet under the mattress. She slumped a bit even as she straightened, “Guess it wasn’t nothing though.”

Yang rubbed the back of her neck, “I’d wonder if she and Qrow were fighting, but don’t they always?”

Dark ears flicked, “They’ve been… seeing each other for what, a year and half now?”

The sisters nodded.

“Maybe,” Blake said slowly, “They weren’t fighting. Maybe they were getting closer, working toward something more permanent.”

Yang and Ruby shared a look. “Uncle Qrow’s never had a long term relationship,” Yang murmured, “Maybe he got uncomfortable with the commitment.”

“We’re talking about Qrow, not you,” Ruby said lightly, earning a mock glare, “Maybe he did something impulsive and Winter asked him to leave. He does a lot of stupid things,” she muttered.

The other two just nodded. If Weiss was there, she would have nodded emphatically.

Again, a scroll went off. Yang opened a message and her expression grew alarmed, “Weiss is heading over here right now.”

“Isn’t she on a date with Olive?” Blake asked.

Yang threw the scroll to the Faunus without warning, “Reason with her. It might be nothing at all,” Yang said. “She shouldn’t ditch Olive over nothing.”

“It might not be nothing,” Ruby reminded her, but she made no move to take the scroll from Blake.

The Faunus dialed Weiss, to no avail. The line was busy.

“Crap,” Yang surmised.

Ruby huffed. “Alright,” she said, taking on her ‘leader’ tone. “Blake- keeping trying Weiss’s scroll. Yang, call Winter. You still have her number, right?” Yang nodded; she, of all people, had been given Winter’s number in case Weiss was seriously hurt. “I’ll grab some money, since Qrow probably won’t be sober enough to pay for the cab. Or any damages,” she muttered, darting up to her room to retrieve her wallet. She was back down and on the front porch a few seconds later.

She shuffled her feet nervously. Qrow had been happy the last time she’d spoken to him, happier than she’d seen him in years; he’d been drinking less too. Despite the weirdness of her best friend’s sister potentially becoming her aunt- and subsequently Weiss kind of becoming her aunt- she liked the two of them together. Gods knew that Winter needed to loosen up and Qrow needed someone to keep him out of- well, too much trouble. And after Winter’s break with her father, it would be disappointing to see it all fall apart.

The scythe wielder poked her head back into the house for a moment, but her teammates both shook their heads; whatever was going on, Weiss was likely talking to Winter about it.

A cab chose that moment to pull over beside the house. Qrow burst through the door, stumbled over the curb, and face planted on the lawn. Through the driver’s side window Ruby could see the cabbie rest his forehead rather forcefully against the steering wheel.

Ruby couldn’t help it; she laughed. It was a loud, teary eyed, stomach aching laugh and damn if she refused to regret it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Qrow threw a wrench in my plans. I'm trying to write/code a choicescript game to supplement my (nonexistent) income. My math homework is up to my eyeballs. My younger brother is poking me to help work on translating RWBY to D&D. Sunless Skies took my money and Seven Kingdoms the Princess Problem took my soul.
> 
> Expect delays.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First off, thank you SO MUCH for the kind comments; it keeps me writing even when the meds aren't doing their job. Secondly, still looking for things you want to see. And third...
> 
> Something that happened today, simply because I have to tell someone about it:  
> Jasper (my brother): *typing something*  
> Me: *babbling*  
> Jasper: *glances up with a confounded expression*  
> Me: What?  
> Jasper: I don't know. I was going to search something on Pintrest and you were talking and suddenly I was typing 'I fucking hate you'.  
> Me: *affronted gesture* What the hell man?

“Alright, cab guy’s taken care of, but I don’t think Qrow’s ever gonna get services from them again,” Ruby reported, stepping through the front door with her uncle’s lone duffle bag under one arm. She eyed the sloshed Huntsman on the pullout bed, his weapon tossed to the floor beside it.

Yang popped her knuckles, “Okay, now for the important part.” She sidled up beside Qrow, making him grumble, but not move. The blonde hovered over him, one finger repeatedly poking his arm and shoulder. “What happened?”

Qrow looked at her with narrowed, unfocused eyes, “Whaddaya mean, ‘What happened?’” He batted her hand away. “I’m ‘n Vale fer a few weeks an’ figured I’d spend it with my favorite nieces.”

“So,” Ruby said, suddenly feeling embarrassed, “This has nothing to do with Winter?”

The Huntsman didn’t flinch, but the reaction was immediate. “You girls got anything t’ drink round here?” He moved to stand, but Yang caught him by the sleeve, yanking him back down. “Yeesh,” he grumbled, leaning back on the heels of his hands, “Can’t even get a break here.”

Blake stood off to the side, still on her scroll. “Weiss’s on her way,” she said. “And she’s out for blood.”

Everyone looked at Qrow expectantly.

“Fine, fine,” he muttered, raising his hands in surrender. He might’ve taken two of them, but all three made it impossible for even an escape. “Long story short,” Qrow stated, “’Cause the rest is none of yer business- she told me I could sign the lease or get out. I got out,” he said blandly, gesturing loosely to house around him.

Ruby blinked at him, “Was it that expensive?”

“I was right,” Yang said proudly. “I knew you got scared and took off.”

Qrow bristled at that, “I ain’t scared of anything! I just didn’t wanna tie that stupid, uptight girl to me for the next five years.”

The Faunus sighed, “You do realize that was practically a proposal, right?”

The sisters squirmed at the idea, but Qrow just rubbed his temples. “I knew exactly what it was,” he told them. “And that’s the last thing she needs. Dust, I hate her job, but she’s good at it. I’d ruin it. Hell, she isn’t even speaking to her father. What could I possibly offer her, eh?”

“I don’t know much about love,” Ruby said quietly, “But I think that having you was enough for Winter.”

“Yer right,” Qrow huffed, “You don’t know much. It ain’t like the books make it out to be, kid. Yah need more than enjoying someone’s company to spend the rest of your life with ‘em.”

“I’m the outsider here,” Blake input, “But if you care to hear my opinion, I think you’ve been doing just fine until now.”

“Huh?” The Huntsman narrowed his eyes at her.

Ruby rocked back onto her heels, “Blake’s right. You guys have been together this long, what’s the difference if you add your name to the lease, or…” she bit back a wince, “Marry her.”

“It’s different,” he snipped.

“Yeah,” Yang said, “It makes it harder for you to take off when you get pissy.”

Qrow was on his feet in an instant, as close to eye-to-eye as they could be with such different heights. “I leave so that I don’t say anything I’ll regret.” He prodded her collarbone, “How many o’ yer relationships ended because you couldn’t keep your temper in check, eh?”

The front door slammed open, Weiss holding Myrtenaster. The blade burned red. “Qrow Branwen, you are a dead man,” she gritted out. Her hair wasn’t in its usual ponytail and both her jacket and heels were missing. Yang couldn’t help but wonder _exactly_ what Weiss and Olive were up to.

“Ah, the Ice Princess arrives,” he sighed.

Before he could go for his weapon, Ruby latched onto one arm, Yang grabbing the other. Blake did them the favor of catching Weiss’s wrist, speaking under her breath to the furious heiress.

The woman in white trembled under her teammate’s grasp, but made no move toward Qrow. The Faunus caught her chin, forcing Weiss to look at her as she spoke. Slowly, the blade’s glow dimmed and Weiss’s posture relaxed. The words, ‘think of the property damage’ might have been spoken, but the other three could only make out so much.

Myrtenaster sheathed and Qrow slipping out of his defensive stance, the sisters let go of their uncle, though Yang gave him a light jab to the shoulder for his previous comment. “None, you asshole,” she told him under her breath. “My relationships end because they aren’t working, that simple.”

“So,” Qrow drawled, “What did your dear sister say about me?”

Weiss tensed again, fists clenched at her sides, “She didn’t say much, just told me that she should’ve known better; they always leave in the end. That was it,” Weiss snapped. “She wasn’t angry; wasn’t crying- she was just- she seemed exhausted. I haven’t seen her like this since mom died! I-” the heiress fumbled, then continued, “I told her that I’d wring your neck. She told me not to waste the energy.”

“Damn,” the Huntsman muttered. “She got like that after your dad dropped her; didn’t speak for almost a week once she finished yelling at him.” Qrow rubbed at his jaw, “That ain’t good.”

“No shit,” Weiss snarled. “You’re the first person she’s stood up for since she started school.” She scoffed, “Not that any of them lasted past the first visit with our father.” She glanced around the room at her friends, “Can we kick him out? If we don’t, I _will_ kill him.”

“Vote,” Ruby stated. “Three options: Qrow leaves now, Qrow leaves once he’s got his head together, or he can stay until he’s ready to go. First option,” she offered.

Weiss raised her hand.

“Second?”

Three hands went up.

The cloaked woman clapped her hands together, “It’s settled then: nothing to drink for the rest of the day and we’ll see how you’re feeling tomorrow morning.”

“Can’t I just leave now?” Qrow asked.

“Please do.” “Not a chance.” Weiss and Yang, respectively, replied.

~

“Dust dammit,” Qrow muttered when he came to. “Am I hungover or still drunk?”

“Possibly both,” Blake said, leaning in the archway between the kitchen and living room. “Are you hungry? Ruby made sure that Weiss didn’t poison anything.”

The Huntsman scrubbed his face with his hands, “I wish I knew you were joking.”

The Faunus ducked back into the kitchen with an enigmatic smile. “He’s awake,” she reported to her roommates. “Looking like he’s regretting whatever he drank on the airship, though.”

“Good,” Weiss said primly, flipping a pancake, “If he had any sense in that thick skull of his, I could be-”

“Waking up with Olive right now,” Yang offered.

Weiss _swore_. She shoved the spatula at Ruby and ran for her room, no doubt to call her ditched girlfriend.

“I hope Olive isn’t too mad,” Ruby said, prodding at a particularly large pancake that Yang had insisted on. How could she tell when it was done, again? It didn’t _seem_ too lumpy. She flipped it, relieved when it didn’t spatter everywhere. The Huntress moved on to the others, listening to her sister and Blake with one ear.

Yang was saying, “Nah, Olive’s cool. She’ll understand.”

“Weiss was late even getting to their date yesterday,” Blake reminded her. “Ruby was having issues applying for that Atlas job you she wanted to take on and she and Weiss spent a half hour bickering with the people who set up the job- something about not wanting foreign Huntresses.”

“At least we got the job,” Ruby said cheerfully, ignoring the fact that it had been Blake’s idea to drag Weiss into said bickering. “I’ve always wanted to see those giant Nevermores.”

Blake cleared her throat, “They only accepted because Weiss is an Atlas native.” More quietly she added, “…she didn’t really want to go in the first place.”

“Oh,” Ruby drooped, poking at the massive pancake in the center of the griddle. “But it’ll be fun,” she said. “Weiss hasn’t been on a good job in weeks.”

“We have been spending a lot of time at home lately,” Yang noted.

They lapsed into silence as Ruby flipped pancakes, occasionally dumping one on the ever-growing heap on a nearby platter. The youngest Huntress got the feeling that they would be eating pancakes for a few days.

Every head turned as Qrow entered the kitchen, every bit as disheveled as when he had arrived. “Morning,” he muttered. Ruby vaguely recalled him saying that there was nothing good about mornings and thus there was no point in doing anything past acknowledging that it was morning. He could be oddly philosophical in that point between drunk and absolutely hammered. The Huntsman slumped at the table, head hung slightly. “Wake me up when the food’s ready.”

Yang and Blake glanced at Ruby, who was peeling the final pancake from the griddle, steam rising from the mound of pancakes. “Can someone grab the butter and syrup,” she asked, reaching into a cabinet for plates.

Soft clanging and thunking filled the room as plates and silverware and glasses were set- to Weiss’s typical specifications. The noise roused Qrow just enough for him to watch the display.

“Did the Ice Princess train you to do that,” he rumbled, eyeing the heaping platter, “How domestic.”

“So long as Weiss cooks for us, we’ll be as domestic as she wants,” Yang said briskly. “Besides, it reminds me of when Mom would make those big dinners and we’d all sit down together.”

Qrow didn’t say a word, now looking at the tableware thoughtfully.

“Does Winter cook?” Ruby asked, setting out jugs of milk and orange juice. “Weiss says that both of them had to learn.”

The Huntsman snorted, “Rarely. We’re busy people.” He paused, “Though she can make a helluva stew.” His eyes glazed over. “I should stick around on her days off more often.”

Yang flicked him in the ear, an act only she and Ruby could come out of unscathed. “Kinda not possible anymore,” she reminded him.

He shrugged, “She won’t be mad at me forever. She’ll find some nice, subordinate military man that her father’ll like an’ she’ll get over me.”

“Is that your choice to make?” Blake asked him.

“Eh?” He made a move to spear a pancake with his fork, only for Ruby to jab him with hers. ‘Wait for Weiss,’ she mouthed. Now he faced Blake, sitting to his right.

The Faunus rested an elbow on the table (Ruby could practically hear Weiss chastise her) and said, “What would you say if Winter decided you were better off without her?”

“Easy,” he replied, “She’s got it the other way around.”

“Go to hell, Branwen,” Weiss said as she entered, scroll clenched in her fist. She circled around the table to remove Blake’s elbow from the surface before settling across from her, fingers neatly tented in front of her.

Yang smirked, “Weiss cursed three times in the last twenty-four hours, I think that might be a record.”

The heiress continued as if nothing had occurred, “Olive was very understanding for someone who got stood up… while her parents are separating.” There were winces all around the table, but she persisted. “And I called Winter.” She stabbed two pancakes rather violently and dropped them on her plate, pushing the platter around the table as they spoke.

“She’s at work,” Qrow interrupted.

“She took the day off,” Weiss said sharply. Ruby fumbled with the dish and the rest of the room sucked in some air. Winter Schnee took a day off work when she wasn’t on the brink of death?

Qrow muttered profanities that were audible only to Blake, who scowled at him.

“And she’s debating whether to ‘burn your crap’ or wait for you to break into her apartment and steal it back,” she added, lightly buttering her breakfast. “Evidently, she is of the opinion that you don’t have the spine to face her again.”

No one spoke, just passed around the pancakes and syrup, the only sound in the room the scraping of utensils and clack of glasses. Qrow didn’t even work up the gall to ask for something alcoholic.

~

Yang wasn’t too sure of what she was doing. She paced back and forth across her and Ruby’s room, paused to listen at the door and, hearing nothing, continued her pacing. In a few hours, she’d work her way through to the ground floor. And then Weiss would yell at her.

She stopped abruptly, strode over to her bed and flopped face down, swatting at her scroll. If it called, it was meant to be. If it didn’t…

“Ahem, hello?”

Yang bolted upward, “Uh, hi. Winter!” Smooth.

The elder Schnee gave her a weary look that silently asked why the fuck she was calling. “Yes, Yang,” she said slowly. There was a faint twitch in her left eyebrow.

“I just… Weiss was worried,” Yang muttered, picking up the scroll. “Ruby managed to drag her out of the house for a few hours, but…” She trailed off again, looking helpless.

Winter’s expression softened- from steel to stone, but softer nonetheless. “It’s not her job to worry about me,” she sighed, giving Yang a knowing glance.

The blonde managed a hesitant smile, “Heh, yeah. It never feels right, when the one you’re supposed to be protecting is trying to look after you.”

“Especially when it hurts worst.”

There was a long silence in which they sat there, Yang’s chin coming to rest on her knees and Winter leaning her jaw onto her knuckles. Yang still wasn’t used to this. Weiss and Blake and even _Ruby_ could sit around quietly for hours, but it drove her up the wall. Now if only she had a way of breaking the quiet.

Winter did the job for her. “I guess- I guess that I’m glad he came to you,” she said. “He…” She tilted her head, “Doesn’t have a lot.”

Yang smiled sardonically, “Neither do you. And Qrow also has… my dad. And Raven, I guess.”

“Raven doesn’t count for much,” the older woman muttered darkly. Then immediately stilled, looking anywhere but Yang. “Sorry,” she mumbled, “That was-”

“Very true.” Winter looked up. Yang went on, “I mean, she’s my mom and all and I know she has her reasons, but she’s the worst, Qrow and dad and I agree on that.” She smiled broadly, more for Winter’s benefit than her own. It was worth it seeing the tension drain from her shoulders. “And honestly, I kinda wish he’d just stayed and acted like an adult.”

Winter tilted her head in confusion.

Yang made a wide gesture, “You know, sat down and used his words?”

The soft titter in response genuinely startled her. Slim fingers tugged on a carefully loose strand of hair. “Well, Yang, I wasn’t much better myself.” She leaned a little closer and for a moment it felt like she wasn’t hours and an ocean away. “Perhaps if I hadn’t just thrown the idea at him. Maybe… sat down and ‘used my words’ we could have worked something out.” The next laugh was a bit less amused and far more bitter. “And I like to think I’m the mature one.”

“To be fair, you can’t say that Qrow was the mature one either.”

Winter straightened primly, though her tone was light. “And I never would.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I read this over a million times but it still doesn't seem quite right. I decided that I was posting it anyway and you guys could give me some feedback. If you want to do so anonymously, I understand because I hate making comments that might be acknowledged in any way beyond noticing they occurred. Hope I got Winter's character well enough. I was considering having Ironwood drop in on her and Yang's chat to check up on her, but I wasn't sure I could write him correctly.
> 
> In other news, happy twentieth to me. (I'm going to community college and writing fanfiction instead of novels. This is not what twelve year old me was thinking about being an 'adult'.)


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So... uh... I'm a piece of shit that doesn't know how to update regularly.
> 
> Enjoy.

Qrow found that living with his nieces could be kind of fun, if a little strange. He hauled himself off of the pullout bed, feeling his joints ache with age and use and misuse. In the back of his mind, Winter was smiling that mischievous half-smile that meant he sounded like an old man. After a couple of times, she’d learned not to say the words out loud, remembering just how much temporal distance was between them. But it never stopped that smile and damn if he didn’t hope to see it again one day.

He shook his head as he ambled into the kitchen, turning a low light on as he passed into the room. Twenty-four hours sober was long enough, wasn’t it? Evidently not, because it took some time for him to paw through the refrigerator to find two beers and nice bottle of white wine. He wondered if the ice princess knew of the existence of the former.

Either way, he grabbed them both, firmly intending on starting his morning shitfaced if it meant downing Weiss’s glorified grape juice.

The door swung shut and a golden glow caught the corner of his eye.

On instinct, he threw one bottle across the room, directly between two shimmering gold spots in the living room.

Blake caught it neatly, eye-shine becoming more clear as he looked at her.

“Don’t sneak up on people kit-kat,” he grumbled, waving his beer in her general direction.

The kid was good at hiding her expressions, but Qrow could feel her disdain from where he stood. “Don’t drink at two in the morning.” She sauntered up, wrapping her hand firmly around the neck of the bottle in his grasp.

He yanked his arm closer to his body, but she moved with him, coming uncomfortably close and her grip shifting so that her nails dug into his palm. The stare down was epic and ultimately one sided.

Blake never blinked and it was only his fierce aura that kept her nails from drawing blood… and Qrow felt more than a little creepy being practically nose to nose with a girl Yang’s age. Wondering if she’d learned her disregard for personal space from his nieces, he withdrew.

The way she tilted her chin was almost unbearable and Qrow slumped against the fridge, guarding against the alcohol’s return to it. Turns out that glowing eyes were unnerving even when rolled.

More easily than he would have thought, Blake popped both tops.

He quickly reached for one, but she yanked them away. And strode to the sink.

And dumped them both.

“What the fuck?!”

Her smirk was infuriating. “Personally, I don’t care about you drinking habits, but I didn’t want you to disappoint Ruby. If I let you do that, I’d be disappointing her too.”

Qrow rubbed the back of his neck.

“Yeah.”

They were both quiet.

“You gonna dump Weiss’s wine too?”

Blake stared at him intently. “Do I look like I have a death wish to you?”

~

It appeared that Ruby was trying to keep him out of the house and far away from his ex’s little sister, presumably for both of their sakes. With the way that Yang kept glancing from him to Blake, he was unbothered by Ruby’s insistence that they leave the house.

Riding on the back of Yang’s motorcycle had taken a little more persuasion, but here he was, slumped in a café drinking a strictly non-alcoholic beverage while his niece burnt her mouth on hot chocolate so thick it had likely been a melted chocolate bar and smeared marshmallow across her nose and upper lip.

He was hit with a distant memory of Summer wetting a napkin and gently wiping the offending smudges away, ending with a light tap on the nose that made a tiny Ruby giggle happily before making a mess all over again. He remembered silver eyes looking his way and an ever-patient smile as Taiyang attempted to do the same for Yang, who was having none of it.

“Uncle Qrow?”

Qrow quickly shifted his expression into a smirk. He snagged a napkin from a holder and tossed it at her face.

“Eep.” Despite her squeak, Ruby caught the object deftly. She stared her uncle until he pointed at his upper lip.

Internally, he marveled at just how young she was, only nineteen and having seen far more than even he had at that age. Summer would heartbroken, incredibly proud or maybe both. He changed the subject, “Didn’t know you had a motorcycle license.”

Marshmallow mess taken care of, Ruby beamed up at him. “You do know that Yang’s been teaching me since I was tall enough to reach, right?”

“Don’t say crap like that, kid.” Qrow said, “Tai would kill me.”

“Yeah right, dad knew.”

Qrow muttered something she didn’t need to hear into his too-strong coffee and downed some before she could inquire. “When’d you get the license though? Yang says you’ve been pretty busy.”

Ruby did what he had only moments before.

He stared disbelievingly. “Don’t tell me that you drove us here _without a license._ ”

“Then I guess I’m not saying anything. Or I could tell you and you could ignore me?” she offered, looking almost as abashed as she did impish.

“For fu- Dust’s sake.” Qrow shook his head. Amusement and something almost akin to respect was slipping through the concern and irritation. “Call Yang, I’m driving us home.”

“But Uncle Qro-ow!”

“No.”

~

“So,” Ruby said, settling next to her uncle on the front porch. “Do you like Winter?”

“Sometimes,” he replied, tossing an arm over a shoulder and tucking her into his side.

“Do you love her?”

Qrow sighed. “Every Dust-damned day of my life.”

She wiggled closer, something she wouldn’t have dared doing if Yang hadn’t forced him to shower- it was shower or she’d take him outside and turn the hose on him like some flea ridden dog; Weiss was more than okay with that idea. “Then what’s the problem?”

“You’ve clearly never been in love,” he replied, tousling her hair.

“Is that weird at my age,” she asked.

He shook his head, “Nah. At your age, I still thought love had nothing to do with me. And you’re a Huntress before anything else, kid; nothing weird about being- what’s the word?” He paused, “Career-oriented.”

Wide, silver eyes looked up at him, “That sounds like something Winter or Weiss would say.”

“Where do you think I got it?”

Ruby elbowed him lightly, “She’s rubbing off on you.”

“I know.”

“You sound pretty okay with that,” she noted.

He rubbed her shoulder, “I got kinda used to the idea after a while.”

“So why’d you leave?”

Qrow heaved a dramatic sigh, “You’re not letting this go, are you?”

She shrugged, “We can talk about something else. Have you been in love before?”

“That’s no better,” he told her. “But if you really wanna know, yeah, twice.”

“And what happened to them?”

There was a long silence as he looked up at the sky, the sun partially hidden behind the clouds.

“The first one didn’t work,” he said at last. “We weren’t compatible- he’s aromantic.” ‘He,’ Ruby mouthed to herself, but didn’t dare say the word. “The second, well, by the time I got my shit together she was married.”

“And where are they now?”

“Running a school and long passed, in that order,” he replied.

Ruby gaped, “Professor Ozpin?”

Qrow laughed a bit, “I told you, Oz and I go way back.”

She slumped against him, “I can never look him in the eye again.”

“It was a helluva ride,” he said wistfully. He gave his niece another squeeze. “And… can we not talk about the second one? It’s something I don’t like thinking about.”

“Okay,” she accepted, “One of these days though.”

“I didn’t agree to anything,” he muttered. But he knew that he wouldn’t disappoint her when he finally had it in him. She seemed to know it too, because she didn’t push the matter, just closed her eyes.

They sat like that for a while, Ruby dozing and Qrow watching the cars go by.

After a moment, she shifted and he looked back down at her. “What are you gonna do?”

“Do?”

“Yeah,” Ruby chirped. “Are you gonna go back to Patch and teach at Signal?”

The idea didn’t appear to sit well with him, mouth twisting like he’d bitten into a lemon. “I doubt it,” he replied. “Maybe I’ll crash there between jobs; go back to taking long missions.” He caught her frown, “What?”

Her mouth had twisted to the side, “I never liked that. It’s been nice, hearing from you every week or so, or from Winter and Weiss.” Before he could protest, she cut in, “I’m not telling you to go back to Winter.” He looked at her warily. “I’m just saying that I’ll miss having you around. Besides,” she added, “If you don’t want to be with her, you don’t have to.”

“Ruby,” he groaned. “Of course I wanna be with Winter; I just don’t think I’m good for her.”

“That’s funny,” she said without much humor.

“Oh,” he asked blandly.

She was quiet for moment. “Weiss said that Winter seemed happy,” she said. “And that she hadn’t seen her with her hair down since they were little.” Ruby’s eyes were without judgment, but he had to look away. “I know that it isn’t that easy,” she told him softly. “But you always told me that anything worth having was worth fighting for. You told me to fight, even if I thought I might lose, because how else could we win?”

 “I did say those things,” he agreed quietly.

“Is Winter worth having?”

Qrow rubbed his face with one hand, exhaling heavily. Stubborn girl.

~

In Atlas that weekend, Ruby and Weiss met them for dinner. There was a ring on Winter’s finger and smirk on Qrow’s lips.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a heads up, Qrow and Winter aren't disappearing and their problems definitely aren't solved, but they're not the main characters here. Next chapter will deal with the people you're here for, promise.
> 
> Next week is spring break, so if I haven't posted anything by the end of next week, feel free to send death threats.
> 
> Also, my brother may or may not start haunting the comments section, so have fun with that.
> 
> Edit: Sorry if this feels rushed, I was kind of worried that I was going to let this fic die and pounded out this chapter on impulse. Also, if you're curious about Blake's eye shine, look up tapetum lucidum.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I should have been studying for my midterms. Instead I wrote this.
> 
> Death threats are no longer necessary, but still welcome :)

“Could you please never do that again?” Weiss plead to her partner (for the twentieth time that week), whose arm was slung across her shoulder. “I thought we established that riding a Nevermore is an incredibly poor life choice.” She clutched at the cloaked woman’s waist with twitching fingers.

“I thought we established that we all make incredibly poor life choices,” Ruby said, groggily. She half stumbled as she was walked into the house. “Can I go to bed now?”

She sighed softly, “Yes, you can, Ruby.” But I probably won’t, she thought, knowing that Blake and Yang were waiting to interrogate her about the incident.

They entered the house without any fanfare, though Weiss announced their presence. She shrugged inwardly, guessing that they had gone out to eat, and hauled her drugged friend up the stairs and to her room. The place was a disaster area, as per usual with Yang, but it didn’t matter right now. All that mattered was that Ruby was comfortable.

Weiss helped Ruby undress and pull on some pajamas and tucked her into bed. But Ruby wouldn’t let her leave. “Stay with me, Weiss,” she requested, her words halting and slurred. “Like at the hospital?”

She missed the heiress’s cringe, but gave a silly grin as Weiss settled on the bed beside her. Ruby snuggled closer and made a clumsy attempt to pull the blankets up over her.

Weiss sighed and did as Ruby wanted. The smaller woman glommed onto her, face in Weiss’s neck and arms around her torso. “Sing for me,” she whispered.

Her voice was still hoarse from crying; the last few nights she had woken up with the noise in her throat, occasionally letting it out into her pillow, praying that she wouldn’t wake Ruby. She couldn’t bring herself to use her aura to heal it, feeling the need to suffer after failing her partner. A few seconds faster and her glyphs could have caught Ruby rather than those bruising, bone-cracking pines.

She sang anyway, a song that she would sing for herself when her burdens were too heavy. It didn’t sound very pretty, but Ruby seemed content, whispering into Weiss’s skin, “Love you.”

A sob caught in her throat and she had to stop. “Love you, too, Ruby,” she breathed. Weiss felt Ruby’s breathing even out, but she resumed singing.

~

When she heard the door open, she loathed the thought of leaving Ruby, of facing her friend’s judgment, but she rose and headed toward the stairs. They met her halfway.

Head hung, tears already falling, she stood there. And was nearly knocked over when Yang tackled her in a hug, shortly followed by Blake.

“Are you okay,” Yang asked.

Weiss squirmed out of their grip, putting a few paces between them. “I’m fine,” she said shrilly, despite the contradiction that was her current state of being. “Ruby’s in bed. She’ll need more painkillers when she wakes up. The doctor suggested that we not let her sleep long enough for it to wear off, though, so that she doesn’t wake up in pain.”

A firm hand gripped her shoulder. “Weiss,” Yang said solemnly, “We know it’s not your fault. We know that you did everything you could and that Ruby made her own choice.”

“But if I-”

“None of that,” Blake cut in, seizing her other shoulder. “If I took the blame every time Yang got hurt, I wouldn’t be able to live with myself.”

“Half a second,” Weiss said, “If I’d been a half a second faster-”

Yang gave her a tooth rattling shake, “You could have prevented one injury in the _dozens- hundreds_ \- we’re going to get in our lifetime. We’re Huntresses, Weiss. We all knew what we were getting into.” Her hand slipped up to Weiss’s cheek, wiping away tears. “She’s alive and she’ll be fine in a few days. You’re alive and once you’re back to normal, you’ll be fine too.” She pulled her into another hug and pressed a kiss to her forehead. “Get some rest; we’ll take care of Ruby.”

The blonde gave her one last squeeze and ducked past her, into the shared bedroom. Blake paused to grip Weiss’s hand before following Yang’s example.

The heiress felt her knees weaken, but she kept upright, stumbling to her room to do the only thing she could think of at the moment: she dialed Olive.

She had collapsed on the bed, one shaky hand holding the scroll above her head as she watched the screen. Olive answered on the first ring.

“Are you okay?” she asked immediately, dark green eyes wide, her own screen shaking.

Weiss gave her a watery smile, “Better off than Ruby.”

The other woman covered her mouth with her hands, “Is she… is she-?” Olive couldn’t seem to bring herself to say it.

“No,” Weiss said. “She’s not…” Weiss couldn’t say it either. “She’s sore and has a low aura and she’s drugged halfway beyond comprehension, but she’s alive.”

Olive exhaled heavily and the shaking stopped, at least on her part. Gentle, red rimmed eyes traced Weiss’s face. “You’ve been out of contact the last six days, when you left the city limits,” she breathed. “Are you still in Atlas?”

She shook her head, “Got home about an hour ago.”

“And you never-” Olive looked miffed, but didn’t continue, her jaw set. The dark skinned woman closed her eyes, visibly swallowing. “You’re okay?”

Weiss nodded.

“Ruby’s okay?”

Another nod.

“I,” the writer paused, thought for a moment, and then continued, “Good. Want to talk about it?” Her voice was audibly strained, but her tone didn’t register with Weiss.

The story came pouring out: how Ruby had scouted ahead when Weiss stopped for a short break, the Nevermore that had been on the ground, its beak amongst the remains of a human corpse and Ruby’s immediate rage that had sent her leaping onto the creature’s back. She had misjudged her own speed and the Grimm took off before she could get in any shots or good swipes, but had refused to leave the beast’s back, trying to bring it down in the sky. Weiss had heard the beating of wings and Ruby’s scream- she was helpless to do anything. It had barrel rolled; Ruby had been able to hold on the first and second time, but the third had sent her plummeting through numerous layers of evergreen branches, Weiss’s glyph appearing just above her before she hit the canopy, unable to slow her descent.

Weiss had barely managed to slay the creature itself before hurrying to Ruby’s aid. The scythe wielder had cracked half a dozen ribs, dislocated her hip, fractured her right arm in three places, and cracked her collar bone. It had been a miracle that she hadn’t hit a solid branch and broke her spine, or punctured her lungs with one of those ribs. The doctors, once Weiss managed to get her to the hospital, were amazed by her resilience.

It had taken a great deal of fighting- and Ruby’s own insistence- to get Weiss to leave the room while in the hospital. She had probably spent three hours of those five days outside of Ruby’s room, mostly just watching over her, though sometimes Ruby convinced her to lay her head down on the bed and sleep. Winter had done her best to do the same, but Weiss was adamant that she wanted to keep an eye on Ruby, even when Qrow was there watching as well.

“That sounds awful,” Olive said softly, though there was something hard in her expression. “Did you call Yang and Blake? Do they know?”

The Huntress nodded, throat tight. “I told them the basics… they were nothing but kind when I got home.” Her mouth twisted. “They don’t get that my failure nearly killed Ruby.”

“Ruby didn’t have to climb on that Nevermore,” Olive insisted gently.

“Of course she did,” Weiss snapped. “It’s Ruby, what else would she do?”

There was a long moment of silence as both took in her words.

Weiss opened her mouth to rescind- or maybe attempt to justify- her words, but Olive cut her off. “You should get some sleep, Weiss. Clearly this has been hard on you.” She hung up.

Something cold and heavy settled in the pit of Weiss’s stomach.

But she refused to think about it, rising from her bed to skulk down the hall and peek into Ruby and Yang’s room.

It was more of a disaster than it had been earlier.

The nightstand between the beds had been shoved off to the side, crammed up against Yang’s dresser and numerous articles of clothing along with several boxes remained where Yang’s bed had been- it was now pushed up against Ruby’s.

Unlike most of the time, Blake and Yang kept a healthy space between themselves and Ruby. Blake lay on the far edge of Ruby’s bed, head just barely on the pillow, while Yang stayed almost entirely on her bed.

The blonde propped herself up on her elbows, smiling weakly at Weiss. “C’mere,” she said gently.

 Weiss inched to the foot of the bed, wondering if Yang had changed her mind upon seeing her sister’s current state. Not even close; the brawler had seized her by the waist and tugged her onto the bed, between herself and Ruby. The heiress bit down a yelp at the handling.

“She was asking for you when we got in here,” Yang confided, her breath warm on Weiss’s ear. “She’s afraid that you’re mad at her.” A strong arm cinched around her, holding Weiss so that she faced Ruby.

“I have no right to be mad,” Weiss murmured.

Blake sat up slightly, gold eyes holding hers. “We disagree. But,” she said, tucking a strand of hair behind Ruby’s ear, “We’re glad that you’re not.”

“It sucks when Ruby cries,” Yang added.

The heiress chuckled weakly, “It truly does.”

They lay like that for a while, just watching Ruby sleep. Blake kept her distance, save for the occasional touch, as if to remind herself that her friend was alright. Yang continued to hold Weiss to her, glancing down once in a while to take in her expression.

It may have only been ten minutes or it may have been an hour, but Weiss started when Blake asked, “What did Olive say?”

“You heard us?” Weiss asked numbly.

“I was just outside when you called her,” the Faunus confessed. “Yang didn’t want you to be left alone.”

She tried to squirm to look at her keeper, but Yang held fast. “I wouldn’t want to be alone if I thought I let something happen to any of you.”

“What happened to ‘we all knew what we were getting into,’?” Weiss asked petulantly.

Blake smiled knowingly, “It’s different when you feel responsible. How many times have you told the rest of us that it’s not our fault when another of us gets hurt?”

The woman in white fidgeted in embarrassment, “A lot.”

 “Now we get to return the favor,” Yang told her, pressing her lips to Weiss’s hair.

She just sighed and went slack, Olive long forgotten.

~

Blake actually managed a smile when she opened the door to Sable, today’s batch of care packages stacked in their arms, tail wagging in amusement. “Deliveries for a Miss Rose,” they said lightly, as they had for the last few days. “I guess it’s your turn to sign for her?”

“It is,” the other Faunus replied, plucking Sable’s pad off the top of their stack.

They made no attempt at conversation, just waited and watched patiently as Blake ran through the motions, occasionally shifting their weight. That taken care of, Sable asked, “Could I come in? I was hoping to see Ruby myself.” They smiled shyly over the packages, “I kinda miss seeing her out here when I pass by.”

Asocial, yes. Rude, not _that_ much. Blake stepped aside, allowing the delivery person entry, and then closed the door behind them. Their scent was still off, but it was a relief to know why. “She’s upstairs right now,” Blake said. “Give me a few and we can take them all in one trip.”

“Thank you,” Sable replied easily, though they only allowed Blake to take two of the six. It was, according to them, their job. Blake didn’t argue, just led them toward Ruby and Yang’s room, hoping they wouldn’t trip on the stairs and attempt to sue the shit out of them. It occurred to her that she might have been spending too much time with Weiss.

Luckily, the climb up was uneventful, but Ruby squealed when Sable entered the room.

“It’s so good to see you,” the bedridden woman called, propping herself up on her elbows. Technically, she was almost entirely healed, but Weiss had been keeping a very close eye on her.

The heiress caught her shoulder, pushing her back down, “Don’t push it,” she warned.

“Her,” Blake corrected, setting the boxes on the foot of the bed, “Don’t push _her_. She will make Yang sit on you if that’s what it takes. She’ll make your dad come sit on you.”

Sable followed Blake’s lead, “Is that really an escalation? I don’t care who your dad is, I would not want to wrestle with Yang.” They circled hesitantly around the side of the bed; Ruby grabbed their hand the moment it was in reach and pulled them down.

The Faunus settled uneasily on the edge, tail wagging slightly. “You don’t know the half of it,” Ruby told them. And proceeded to tell the unknown half.

Blake rested the heels of her hands on the bed, debating whether to leave Ruby to her captive audience. Ruby had urged her out earlier, claiming that she had enough people (i.e. Weiss) watching her every move. However, even knowing the ‘why’ of Sable’s scent didn’t make her any more comfortable. Maybe it was different for her teammates who rarely had to rely on smell, but for her it was unnerving.

Scent let her know who was around, whether they were sweating and nervous, if they were unfamiliar or friendly. It was, perhaps, a bit silly now but the hesitation remained. She left the room.

The mild anxiety still eating at her, she fled downstairs and out the front door where she stretched on the lawn. She touched her toes, flattened her palms on the grass, shifted into a handstand, slowly brought her feet down and stayed like that for a bit, stomach arched in the air. Yang loved to lean over at tickle her bare flesh when she did this.

She pushed herself upright only to sit down, scowling slightly at Sable’s mail truck before spreading her legs into a split. Blake had no idea how long she remained in that position, arms above her head, toes pointed in opposite directions. Her inner thighs ached and the blood was leaving her fingertips, but there was something oddly meditative about it.

The next thing she knew the front door was opened and Weiss was telling Sable to have a nice day. Blake’s arms fell to her sides, listening as Sable gave an equally kind reply before the door closed.

“Goodbye, Blake,” they said casually, though the other Faunus made no move to make eye contact.

Blake cleared her throat, “Sorry.”

“S’alright,” Sable replied, immediately knowing what she meant. “Kinda weird to get a whiff of your group, you know. All of you smell like you’ve been sharing clothes and beds.”

She watched them smirk as they hopped into the truck, giving a wave as they started it up. Blake could only wave back shyly, a bit of heat in her face. Perhaps she could stand to be a little friendlier with Sable.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want your thoughts on what Weiss was singing to Ruby- I had a couple of ideas, but I want to know what came to your minds.
> 
> While I have your attention, thank you all! The kudos and kind/thoughtful comments mean a lot to me. And I keep making dumb noises every time I get an email saying I have a comment- pretty sure I'll never get tired of seeing that people are enjoying what I write.
> 
> PS- hope you're not tired of my pointless OC's yet!


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Would have updated yesterday, but my depression decided I was enjoying my break too much and kicked my ass.
> 
> Also, bear with me, I'm a bit unsure of how to Pyrrha.

Some things, in Ruby’s mind at least, were simply a fact of life: the sky was blue, Grimm were bad, the Schnee family was terrifying, and Pyrrha gave some of the best hugs. She sighed as she melted into the taller woman’s warm embrace, face buried in her shoulder.

“I missed you too, Ruby,” Pyrrha greeted gently, strong arms holding Ruby close.

Yang’s hugs were always suffocating, Weiss was… pointy and Blake wasn’t much of a hugger; she had to be in the mood for cuddling. Pyrrha was just warm and solid, especially without her once trademark armor. “Did somethin’ stupid,” Ruby muttered.

“So Yang has told me,” she acknowledged, loosening her grip on the scythe wielder. Ruby didn’t let go and the young professor made no move to make her. “I was so relieved to hear that nothing happened. And I know that the moment Jaune, Ren, and Nora get back they will visit.”

“Embarrassing,” she grumbled.

Pyrrha pet Ruby’s head, “We all do stupid things at one point or another, Ruby. And every time we learn from our mistakes so that we never make them again.”

“You’re such a teacher.”

Now Pyrrha extracted herself from the other woman’s grip. “And I have yet to fail a student, thank you very much.”

Ruby pouted up at her (having not grown an inch from the day she turned fifteen). “It’s not even your second semester yet! You couldn’t have failed a student.”

“Wonderful, isn’t it?” Pyrrha said lightly.

“You’ve been living with Jaune for too long,” she muttered, finally allowing Pyrrha off the front porch and into the house, leading her into the living room.

“Hello, Blake,” Pyrrha called warmly to the Faunus. She was clutching a game controller and scowling at the television screen as she guided what appeared to be a little heart through a series of obstacles. Her only response was a quiet grunt, which Pyrrha assumed was the best she would get until Blake either beat the game or rage quit.

“She’s been doing that for the last half hour,” Ruby stage whispered.

Pyrrha frowned at the screen, watching the increasingly horrifying bullet hell Blake was dealing with and the unnerving foe she fought. About a dozen lasers chose that moment to lock onto the heart and tear it in half- the game crashed and Blake dropped the controller, ears flattening against her head as she scowled at the blank television. “Hello Pyrrha,” she said, sounding utterly _done_. “It’s nice of you to come visit Ruby while she’s _confined to her bed_.” Gold eyes narrowed in the small woman’s direction.

“Well, I heard Pyrrha’s car outside and knew that if I didn’t get the door you wouldn’t notice her until you beat the level or got your butt whupped again,” Ruby reasoned.

“And that explains why you were down here, lounging on the couch and walking back and forth between here and the kitchen,” Blake shot back.

Ruby folded her arms indignantly, “I didn’t hear you say anything.”

They locked gazes for a second, Pyrrha rocking back and forth on her heels as they went through the motions. In the past four years she had become accustomed to team RWBY’s bickering and had figured out when someone needed to actually intervene.

After a while, both sighed and Ruby flopped down on the couch with her head in Blake’s lap. Blake just leaned back, looking somewhere between resigned and content with her situation, slim fingers carding through dark hair. Pyrrha stared, realizing only a short instant later that it was rather rude and sat on the side Ruby wasn’t occupying.

“How has it been,” she started hesitantly, “All four of you still living together.” She loved her teammates, all in different ways, but she wasn’t sure she could live with them beyond the four years she had endured- Nora was not quiet in any sense of the word and there was little any of them could do about it save taking her out of the room or wearing her out, both of which were typically Ren’s job. How they made their marriage work she had yet to figure out. Jaune, at least, was a polite roommate even if it wasn’t the relationship she had hoped for.

The pair on the couch didn’t miss a beat. “It’s been awesome,” Ruby stated simply. “Ever since Weiss moved in, it’s been home.” Blake murmured her agreement, hand never stilling in Ruby’s hair, and added, “If she hadn’t we probably would’ve died from scurvy.”

“I didn’t know that Weiss could cook.”

Ruby shrugged as well as she could from her sprawling position. “She hadn’t needed to since she got to Beacon, but she brushed off her skills when she lived on her own.” She watched Pyrrha from her upside down position, “Do you cook, or does Jaune?”

Pyrrha smiled, looking a little sheepish, “Well, I’m typically at the school, so I eat there and Jaune is rarely at the apartment more than once a week, so when we’re together we just go out.”

“Finally?” Blake quipped.

Her smile went sad, “I’m beginning to think that it’s time to move on.”

“Well, have you told him?”

“Obviously not,” the Faunus answered Ruby. “If she had, they’d be together by now.”

The redhead rubbed her temples, “Have I always been this obvious?”

“So obvious that _only_ Jaune could miss it,” Blake replied solemnly. “Even Ruby would’ve picked up on it within the first year.”

Ruby made a face, “Me and Pyrrha?”

Blake rolled her eyes, “Not remotely the point I was making.”

Desperate for a change in topic, the professor turned on them, “What about you two? I assumed that it was only a matter of time before someone on team RWBY found someone; you are attractive, successful Huntresses.”

“Pass,” Ruby said easily. “Who needs relationships when I have my teammates?”

Her pillow nodded, “I think I’m done with relationships. And even if I wasn’t, no one would believe that I’m single anyway.” As if she was only now aware of her actions, she untangled her fingers from Ruby’s hair.

Green eyes narrowed, “So you’ve never thought of dating someone on your team?”

The cuddling pair seemed to instinctively start to say no, but both paused with their mouths open. They shared a look and closed their mouths.

Considering the potential revelations caused by her words, Pyrrha granted them a distraction, “So, what game were you playing?”

Immediately, Blake’s expression darkened.

~

“So why’s Blake slumped like that?” was the first thing Yang asked as she walked into the house, shucking off her jacket and boots.

The Faunus had scrunched herself up into the corner of the couch, arms around her legs, forehead on her knees. If Weiss was there, she would have warned her about messing up her back, but she couldn’t bring herself to care. Or answer her partner.

“Pyrrha beat the final boss,” Ruby replied. The professor looked a bit guilty. “Turns out that it wasn’t exactly the final boss and Blake’s got at least another half hour of gameplay.”

Now Blake spoke up, “She beat him. And she didn’t kill him. Do you have any idea how many times that thing killed _me_?”

“Well, I didn’t see how that would solve anything,” Pyrrha defended. “You told me the premise of the game was that you never need to kill anyone and that you hadn’t, so I didn’t either.”

“She was too stunned to say anything,” Ruby put in. “Blake must have stared at the screen two minutes before it sunk in.”

“And two more until I realized she’d spared him,” the Faunus groaned. Her ears had been stuck to her head for the last twenty odd minutes. Ruby pet her hair very gently; it didn’t seem to make a difference.

At last, Yang noticed Ruby. “You,” she yelped, “You’re supposed to be in bed. If Weiss came home she’d have an aneurysm and then kill all three of us!” She glanced at Pyrrha, “Four of us.”

Ruby pouted, “I’ve been downstairs all morning. Why should I have to go back to bed now? Besides, Weiss shouldn’t be home until tomorrow.”

“That’s assuming that everything goes well with Olive,” Blake reminded her.

The younger woman made a squicked face at that thought, but held her ground. “Still, even if she does come home early, it won’t be until this evening. She and Olive had a whole day planned since Weiss decided to take some free time.”

Yang looked unnervingly solemn, “And when Weiss asks you if you got rest and stayed off your feet?”

Ruby opened her mouth to state that she could tell Weiss exactly that, but all she could think of was how devastated Weiss looked in the hospital and how much urging and promising it had taken to get her out of the house that day. The scythe-wielder sighed and hauled herself to her feet.

She let out a startled yip as Yang grabbed her up, holding her princess style. “C’mon, I doubt Pyrrha will mind our messy room.” She smiled apologetically at her friend before carrying her sister up to their room, Blake and Pyrrha shortly behind her.

As had become usual, Ruby was settled in the middle of the two beds with Yang and Blake on either side. After a bit of coaxing, the redhead sat at the foot of the makeshift double bed, between Ruby and Yang’s legs. She did, however, mention the odd arrangement.

“None of us really like leaving Ruby alone and twin beds aren’t great for cuddling, thus-” Yang made a vague gesture at their joined beds. “It fits all four of us. I mean, it can get a little cramped cause Ruby likes to sprawl and Weiss latches onto the nearest heat source.” She jerked her thumb toward herself.

Pyrrha’s brows knit together. “I distinctly recall the four of you sleeping in separate beds at Beacon.”

“Most of the time we did,” Blake told her. Of course, by the time graduation had rolled around and Cinder had been long since dealt with, it was not uncommon for one of them to move in the middle of the night- typically the two (three or even all four) who were having the hardest time falling asleep either from stress or nightmares. “I guess it’s become habit since Ruby got hurt though.” Naturally she didn’t mention all the times they passed out in each other’s rooms for no particular reason other than they didn’t feel like moving.

The young professor remained thoughtful. “And Weiss’s girlfriend is comfortable with this arrangement?”

“Why wouldn’t she be,” Ruby asked. “Isn’t everyone close to their friends?”

Neither Yang nor Blake spoke up, so Pyrrha replied. “I can honestly tell you that, though I consider Ren, Nora and Jaune my closest friends, I’ve never shared a bed with any of them.”

At this Yang smirked, “I’m only surprised by that last one.”

Pyrrha just rubbed her temples.

~

They’d invited Pyrrha to stay over, spent over an hour attempting to convince her that she wouldn’t be intruding and finally broke out the booze and made sure that she’d have to call a cab if her absolutely _had to_ get home that night. When she woke up that morning, only a tiny bit hung over, Blake was sitting on the back of the couch looking more pensive and concerned than usual.

“Good morning,” the professor greeted, already pressing firmly into pressure points that would help to relieve her headache. “Is something the matter?” Something definitely was, but the question was more to gauge whether the quiet Faunus would talk about said something.

“I thought this crap was over once I left Beacon,” was the deadpan reply. “Though I suppose that if you’re anything to go by, it just doesn’t work that way.”

Pyrrha didn’t bother to take offense- she didn’t mean it- just leaned closer, looking into golden eyes.

“Sorry,” Blake muttered, looking away.

“As you may have noticed,” Pyrrha said softly, “I’m not exactly the one to ask about relationships.”

“Have you considered just going out with someone else? To see if you’re not just fixated on Jaune.”

She ran one hand- still callused from years of training- up and down Blake’s arm. “I’m not sure that I could,” she admitted. “As much as I want to move on, I don’t think I’ll be able to until I let him know.”

“So why not just tell him?” They’d had _this_ argument before. It seemed Blake just wanted to fill silence.

The other woman sighed, “Because I dream about it all the time; the nightmares are more common though: the thought of him avoiding me, how uncomfortable it could make him, if it would ruin our team dynamic. I just… he means too much.” She squeezed Blake’s bicep, “You know that.”

“Yes,” the Faunus sighed, “Yes, I do.”

“And you live with your whole team,” Pyrrha added sympathetically, “It’s not like you could escape her without escaping all of them.”

Blake grabbed Pyrrha’s hand tightly. “If I said anything,” she whispered, “I _would_ have to escape them all.”

Dust’s sake, Pyrrha hoped that that didn’t mean what she thought it did, but she wouldn’t dare seek clarification. She knew how much it must have hurt just to admit it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In hindsight, that last conversation feels a little out of place, but I don't want to take it out.
> 
> Also, updates will probably return to being more sporadic because the more I write, the less I'm sure of where the hell this is all going.
> 
> PS: Brownie points for those who know/have experienced what Blake is playing. Fuck that game and its fucking feels.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Still not dead!

In a rare turn of events, Blake wasn’t the first person awake. She had come downstairs to turn on the coffeepot for when Weiss got up, but it was already going. There was also a mug with a bag of tea in it and a massive bowl of cut fruit. Blake raised her eyebrows at it, but put the kettle on the stove to heat of her water and fixed a bowl for herself, perching on the counter to eat while she waited.

It certainly hadn’t been Ruby- she’d fallen asleep reading in Blake’s room that night and it had been a hazard to get out of bed without waking her. And Weiss was over at Olive’s apartment doing… whatever the two did that Blake _did not_ want to think about for multiple reasons.

So that only left one person.

Blake was off the counter and peeking into the front room immediately, wondering what Yang was up to.

“Morning, Blake,” her partner greeted cheerfully. Yang was sprawled across the couch, controller in one hand and a fork with some cantaloupe speared on the end in the other. She waved at Blake with the fork for a second, before swearing and stuffing it in her mouth to keep both hands on the controller. Her nose wrinkled and her grip on the controller was getting tight.

Blake found Yang’s focused expression incredibly cute and leaned in the doorway a moment to watch her play. Skilled fingers mashed buttons and her tongue poked out of the corner of her mouth in concentration, like she’d seen Ruby do sometimes. Blake sometimes wondered if their dad did that too, or if it was something one had picked up from watching the other.

The kettle in the other room was beginning to whistle and both of them jumped. Blake heard something crack near Yang and she winced.

“Don’t… break another one,” Blake murmured, stepping back into the kitchen to remove the hissing kettle.

Yang was temporarily forgotten as she filled the mug and let the scent of tea overtake her. The steam coiled in the cool morning air, curling up to caress her face. Blake sighed in contentment and picked up the mug with both hands, holding it like it might slip away from her.

Now, slowly and steadily, Blake returned to the front room where Yang was once again balancing playing her game and eating her breakfast. Blake took a seat on the armrest, something that Weiss would give her hell about if she saw it- after the caffeine hit her, at least.

“You’re up early,” Blake commented, nose hovering over her drink.

“For me, you mean,” Yang shot back, nearly dropping her fork as she scrambled to return fire against a sniper. “This is pretty normal for you.”

Blake hummed in agreement and took a long sip of her tea.

Yang finally paused her game, tossing the controller aside.

They were both quiet for a moment, Yang eating and Blake drinking. It was strange. Blake enjoyed silence, sure, but she had come to enjoy the sound and energy that Yang brought to the group and their home. It had come to the point where she couldn’t imagine living alone, or with someone who couldn’t fill a loud quietness.

Yang caught Blake looking. She mumbled something like, ‘What do you want?’ around a mouthful of melon.

Blake just smiled. If her partner wanted to talk she would.

And she did.

“Ruby’s ready to go back into the field,” Yang told her, setting her now empty bowl aside. “I agreed to go with her to Vacuo to hunt a small beowolf pack on Friday. We’re planning on being there for a week or so.”

Today was Tuesday.

“Do you think she’ll be ready in three days?” Blake asked. She knew her own opinion: Ruby was ready to go nearly a week ago and it was only Weiss and Yang’s protectiveness that kept her at home for so long. But Yang hadn’t asked for her opinion, so she would just listen.

“Yes,” Yang mumbled reticently. “I just… I don’t want to think she’s ready and then have her not be, you know?” She combed her fingers through her hair, untangling snarls that she normally wouldn’t have stood for. Upon closer inspection, Blake could see dark circles under her eyes.

Blake slid down from the armrest, sitting shoulder to shoulder with Yang. “I know, but you need to trust Ruby. And you need to trust your own judgement.”

Yang stared at her for a moment, looking exhausted. “You’re right.”

“Naturally,” Blake said lightly.

Her partner snorted. “Now you sound like Weiss.”

Blake just grinned as she resumed her place on the armrest, Yang’s controller somehow ending up in her hands.

“You little…”

Yang eyed her as Blake started back up the game, delivering an effortless headshot to the first enemy to poke its head out of cover.

She knew what plotting looked like, even out of the corner of her eye. “If you’re going for that achievement you were having trouble with last night, attacking me is the best way not to get it.”

Yang seemed to consider that.

Blake kept playing.

Yang lunged.

The Faunus hopped up on the back of the couch, watching as her partner leapt through her shadow and faceplanted on the floor, one knee caught on the armrest.

Slowly, she turned over, leaving that one leg over the side of the couch. “I hate you,” Yang said tiredly, looking defeated. She wore the faintest smile on her lips, letting Blake know that she wasn’t mad.

There was a quiet _ding_ as Blake earned the achievement for Yang.

And now, Blake knew that she was mad.

Blake regretted nothing as she bolted for the stairs, hoping Yang had left her window open for a quick escape. She saw Ruby peek out of her room, blinking blearily at the blurs of yellow and black tearing down the hallway and into the opposite room.

~

Weiss loaded the last bag into the back of her car and paused to look up at the apartment building one last time. She could see a figure- her figure- at the window, watching her.

She slammed the trunk closed, tipped her chin up and got into her car, pausing only to shoot a group message to her teammates about where she’d be if they needed her.

Logically, she chose somewhere she hadn’t been before, a new café half way across the city, in an area she usually avoided except to visit investors at her father’s behest. The unfamiliar area would give her something to focus on and the long drive would give her the time to let the tears out.

It might have made more sense to get her crying done before driving off, but she couldn’t let Olive see what this was doing to her, not after being the one to say it was over.

Her stomach churned and her chest felt heavy, like her heart had gone solid and still within. Gods, she felt like she was going to throw up. She took a slow, shaky breath and started the car.

The whole drive, Weiss kept her eyes on the road, one hand occasionally leaving the wheel to dab away a tear with a tissue. She didn’t let herself sob, her nose didn’t run and she never let out a noise save for the rare, sharp intake of air. Honestly, it was easier to hold herself together now, in private, than it had been in front of all those people in the hospital a few weeks ago when Ruby was hurt.

She would like to attribute her composure it to having seen it coming, but she honestly hadn’t.

When she came to a stop outside the café, she pressed her forehead against the steering wheel, taking a couple of steeling breaths before she stepped outside, a serene smile on her face. Said smile only broadened when she saw Blake was waiting for her, golden eyes alight at the sight of her.

Weiss’s chest felt a little lighter. She would get through this.

~

Yang, as a matter of fact, had left her window open.

Blake had jumped out, landed lightly on her feet and darted around the side of the house, into her car. She’d grinned into her rear view mirror as she pulled out, watching as Yang flipped her the bird and Ruby leaned out the front door, staring like they were both insane.

She didn’t know where she was going until Weiss’s text came through and she found herself in the high-class area of Vale ignoring blatant looks at her ears, and mild disdain toward her plain jeans and tank top compared to the dresses and suits around her, as she waited for her friend.

Weiss looked as stunning as always, even without (especially without, in Blake opinion) make up on. Her hair was swept neatly up into a ponytail and she moved effortlessly in high heels that nearly closed the height gap between them. She looked a bit tired, much like Yang had been, but Blake had no intent of pushing her; she knew that Olive was having a rough time right now and it couldn’t be easy on their relationship.

The heiress immediately noticed the looks Blake was receiving and offered her arm.

“Such a gentlewoman,” Blake teased, graciously accepting, if only to see the looks of disgust as the pair linked arms and strolled inside. As usual, Weiss was chilly, but the warmth of the building made up for it- the literal warmth, as the looks they got were impressively frigid.

If it bothered Weiss, she had it well hidden under a mask of contentment.

“Get whatever you want,” she told Blake, voice carrying slightly above the murmurs. “I can pay.”

And, because she didn’t feel like a ‘I can feed myself, thank you,’ argument today, Blake just murmured her appreciation. The light squeeze to her hand, followed by a slight increase in noise, made Blake wonder if she wasn’t the only one looking for trouble today.

If so, this could be fun.

Weiss initiated quiet small talk as they waded through the line of people ordering their six-times specialized drinks. Blake told her about Ruby coming into her room last night, after Yang accidentally elbowed her in her sleep, about the job the sisters accepted and her escape from the RWBY household after getting the achievement Yang had been working on for the last week.

Her laughter was sweet and oddly carefree and it made Blake smile more.

The man at the counter, his nametag in an excessively ostentatious script that Blake couldn’t make out, raised his nose at the sight of them. He tapped a plaque- not a, sign, a _plaque_ \- that read: ‘We reserve the right to refuse customers.’ Neither of them moved.

“Next in line,” he said briskly, gesturing toward the door. A few people in the shop were clapping.

Weiss cleared her throat primly, silencing the quiet claps and her smile took on a distant, chilly quality that made the man behind the counter shift his weight.

Blake could drag her out now and Weiss wouldn’t make a scene. Or she could stand there, watch it all go down and probably get a free meal out of this.

She did the latter, giving Weiss’s hand a gentle squeeze in encouragement.

“Sir, might I ask why?” she started, looking at him like he was utterly bemusing. “Is there a dress code? If so, it was not indicated outside.” She glanced around the room and added in a stage whisper, “And so poorly enforced.”

He cleared his throat as well, though he lacked the authority that she did. “We do not serve your kind.” He was very obviously looking at Blake.

“You’re not welcome here,” someone called.

Blake almost turned to look, but Weiss held her in place.

“I was not aware that this shop did not serve huntresses,” Weiss said to the man.

He went incredibly still.

Weiss tugged at Blake’s arm now. “Come, let’s find somewhere that appreciates us. We ought to warn the rest of our friends; maybe leave a review online so that the mistake isn’t made again.”

They made it about halfway to the door before the man’s brain caught up with what was happening.

“Wait- wait, wait,” he sputtered. “That was not remotely what I meant, miss.”

Weiss waved him off. “Oh, it’s no matter, sir. We would rather not be served where we aren’t wanted. Have a lovely day!” But she had already stopped, waiting for him to make his next move.

“No, we have nothing against huntresses mi- madam,” he fumbled.

She arched an eyebrow. “What other reason could you have possibly had to refuse us service?” Her mouth turned up at the corners, false even to the most oblivious in the room. “Surely it was nothing so archaic as to be because of this.” She gestured to her arm in Blake’s. “I assumed you merely found us crude and violent.” Her tone was never less than entirely saccharine.

“N-Nothing like that, madam,” the man assured her, his face slowly reddening as every eye in the room turned on him.

Weiss blinked innocently. “Then what could possibly be the problem?”

“Your filthy Faunus pet,” someone- the same person as earlier- snapped, apparently tired of their back and forth.

Now Weiss turned, slow and deliberate, to face a young man in slacks and a button up shirt. Her smile broadened. “Ah, Grayson Bachmann, you look so alike your father. How is Slate? Tell him that Jacques sends his best and looks forward to the upcoming shipping negotiations.”

The young man went white. “Miss Schnee,” he gritted out.

“Oh, I’m so sorry, was there something that you wanted to say to me, Grayson?” Blake didn’t know that someone could speak in a tone simultaneously sweet and venomous.

“No, Miss Schnee,” he said stiffly, focusing on his cup.

The muttering escalated from there: Weiss Schnee, out with her Faunus girlfriend?

Blake was betting that papa Schnee would have an aneurysm when this got back to him. She’d tell Yang about this later- at some point Yang had made it a goal to get Weiss’s rigid sister to snort and this just might do it. And make Blake Yang’s favorite again.

Weiss now turned back to the man. “We will be going now, sir, sorry for disrupting your business.”

He called after them, offering everything at half price.

Blake grinned as Weiss all but slammed the door behind them. “Guess we’ll find somewhere else to eat?” she asked.

Weiss smirked at her. “Wait for it.”

They didn’t get more than two steps further before the man had burst out the door to offer his apologies.

As Blake predicted, they ate for free.

~

“Ow,” Ruby groaned, more disappointed than actually hurt, from where she lay face down in the grass.

Yang was on her knees beside her in an instant. “Are you alright? Did I flip you too hard?”

“I’m fine,” she mumbled into the lawn. “Are you bored of throwing me around yet? Cause I am.”

Her sister sighed, dragging her to her feet.

Ruby slumped limply against her. “I don’t know why you think I need to learn hand to hand. I always have Crescent Rose with me and I never fight people. Except you.” She bumped her forehead against Yang’s shoulder a few times, like she would against a wall when she was frustrated. It was similarly solid, at least.

“I’m just trying to look after you, Rubes. Humor me.”

Ruby sighed dramatically, but returned to a fighting stance.

“Bend your knees a little more.” She did. “Hands up- not that up.” Her hands were not-that-up. “C’mon, one foot for-”

Yang was tackled to the ground in a flurry of rose petals.

They tussled on the ground for a bit, mussing each others hair, attempting to pin limbs, bonking heads against each other and the ground and generally behaving like a couple of unruly grade-schoolers. Neither were truly fighting, but they yelped and growled and pushed until they had rolled themselves down onto the sidewalk and a sharp pebble dug into Yang’s back.

“Okay, time out,” Yang called, scrambling to a sitting position.

They parted slowly, both waiting for the other to leap and re-ignite their struggle, but neither did, instead both settling where they had landed, Ruby with her legs crossed and Yang leaning forward with her chin on her knees. There was grass in their hair, green stains on their pants and Ruby was dusting some dirt off her shirt.

“Sorry,” Ruby muttered.

Yang looked at her sister in surprise. “For what?”

Ruby leaned up against her and Yang shifted to tuck her into her side.

“I know you want me to be safe,” she said. “And I know that you know that we can’t always be.”

“We can’t,” Yang agreed quietly.

Silver eyes met violet. “But I could try harder. To be safe, I mean.”

At that, Yang laughed. “Couldn’t we all?”

“Yeah. A bit.”

They stayed there like that for a while, until Ruby pulled away and rose to her feet. She offered her sister a hand. “Back to work?”

Yang grinned. “Back to work.”

~

When Weiss and Blake got home, Yang had Ruby in a headlock.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, Weiss and Olive are over, Blake is stupidly infatuated with her teammates, Weiss took her emotions out on some assholes in a coffee shop and Yang and Ruby worry about each other.
> 
> Expect the next chapter soon- I actually have this one started.


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun fact: this was the first thing I ever wrote for this story, back during the volume three break.
> 
> I would have just released this, but I felt the need to bridge it. And then I hated the chapter that I was going to put in between. So, here, have this. Sorry if the tone seems a little off- it's kind of old now.

Weiss’s scroll buzzed for the sixth time in the last hour and she resisted the childish urge to fling it against the wall or shove it in her desk and be done with it. She stabbed the ‘accept’ button with her free hand, the other furiously scribbling on a performance review that had come in three days late. “Schnee,” she growled, not looking up from her work.

“Egad,” the caller drawled, “Long week, Ice Queen?”

Her cramping hand paused and she spared her roommate/teammate a glance, scowl easing slightly. “There are no words in our language to describe this week, Xiao Long.” She paused, debating whether to dismiss her friend and finish or take a break. Yang’s grin pushed her toward the latter. “How’s Vacuo? Is Ruby sick of the heat yet?” Weiss set the pen down and attempted to massage feeling into her hand.

Yang brightened further. “It’s awesome; all outdoor vendors, spicy foods and half naked, suntanned locals. And,” she brought the scroll closer, like she was worried someone might be listening in, “Ruby’s gone native; no tights, no sleeves.”

The heiress felt her eyebrows go up, “No sleeves? No gloves?”

“Nope,” Yang replied cheerfully, popping her lips on the p.

They shared a smile. “That’s good,” Weiss said softly, “Even if it’s under duress, she can’t hide her scars all her life.” All of team RWBY knew their leader’s sensitivity regarding Cinder’s burns.

The blonde opened her mouth, thought better of whatever comment she was about to make, and merely offered, “Want pictures?”

“ _Why_ would I want pictures of Ruby wearing fewer clothes than usual?” Weiss asked.

“Cause it’s a rare occasion and has to be noted,” Yang said simply. “You’re getting pictures,” she added decisively, “Blake too.” Her eyes lit, “Where is the kitty cat anyway?”

Weiss ran her teeth over her lower lip, “She’s finishing up at a rally and said not to expect her until after midnight.”

Yang squinted at her and she was momentarily self-conscious- do I look that stressed, she wondered. Instead the blonde asked, “Isn’t it two in Vale? It’s just past midnight here.”

There was a long silence as Weiss stared at the timestamp. Sure enough, it was 2:31. “Huh,” Weiss murmured. “That went by fast.”

“When was the last time you slept?” And now Yang was in full on mother hen mode. “Have you eaten in the last six hours? Dust, do you even know? If this turns into Port’s third year final again, so help me…” She was looking increasingly agitated.

Weiss rubbed her temples, “I’ve been up since seven, I had something to eat before I sat down, and no, I doubt it’ll come to that.”

There was suspicion in Yang’s expression, “How much coffee have you had?”

She tried ticking off the number of pots on her fingers, only to have her hand seize. “Dammit,” she hissed, once again rubbing at her aching appendage. “More than I should, likely less than necessary,” Weiss managed through gritted teeth.

“Get some rest, Weiss,” Yang ordered. “And I mean in your bed. Do _not_ make me call Blake and have her drag you to your room- again.” It was Ruby last time, but that’s just semantics.

Weiss raised her hands in surrender, “Fine, just let me-”

“Bed,” Yang said firmly, “Now.”

The heiress stood slowly, stretching her unused muscles, “I could make an unflattering innuendo there, but I’m afraid that’s your job.” Any comment Yang would have made was silenced by Weiss popping her knuckles. Her expression softened, “Goodnight, Yang. Stay safe. Don’t forget those pictures.”

“Wouldn’t miss the opportunity,” Yang said easily. “Now sleep.” She hung up.

Weiss eyed the report before her. It had been due two hours ago. She sighed heavily. So, what was eight more hours? She pushed away from the desk only to clutch at the edge as her legs grew weak. She could run for miles, do countless back flips in a row and land a bone crushing kick to someone’s ribs, but five hours of disuse left them unreliable. Weiss made a mental note to set a timer next time she did paper work; she hated feeling weak.

She hadn’t quite made it to the door when it was pulled open. “Dammit Yang,” she grumbled as Blake slipped into her office.

“She’s just looking out for you,” the Faunus murmured, wrapping one arm around her waist and pulling Weiss’s arm over her shoulder. “I thought you were in bed already,” she added, “Otherwise I would have made you stop earlier.”

“Just tell me that she didn’t wake you up,” Weiss said as they hobbled down the hallway.

Blake shook her head, “I’m still winding down; the rally was a disaster.”

Weiss frowned, “What happened? Was anyone hurt?”

“No, no one was hurt.” She could feel her friend slump though, and saw her secondary ears drooping. Weiss nudged her slightly and she continued. “Word got around about the rally and some punks trashed the venue. And then the catering company took one look at us and left. Some protestors showed up and it was nearly violent. I stayed late to clean up so that we wouldn’t be charged extra.”

The pair stopped at Weiss’s room. Blake made to pull away, but Weiss’s knees buckled. The heiress yipped as Blake carried her princess style inside and settled her on the bed. Too tired to change, Weiss merely yanked out her ponytail and removed her bra. Blake turned to leave, but Weiss caught her wrist. “Just lay down,” she said, “You’re dead on your feet.” She scooted to the side to make room.

Blake proved the statement by collapsing next to her and both were out in a matter of minutes.

               ~

Contrary to Blake’s incredibly feline nature, she rarely slept more than five hours at a time, so when Weiss woke up alone she was hardly surprised. She rose from the bed, grabbed some clean clothes and headed for the bathroom further down the hall. Twenty minutes of her morning ritual taken care of, she emerged with fresh clothing and wet hair, and headed down the stairs, fingers on the railing that Ruby and Yang enjoyed sliding down so much; one of these days they’d break it.

Blake was already at the kitchen table, nose in a book and mug of chamomile tea in hand. “I made a pot of coffee,” she said without looking up.

It went unspoken that any cooking would be left to Weiss. Blake had declined to learn how to cook and instead helped with dishes or other household chores, Yang was _not_ allowed near the oven for any reason and Ruby’s skills were progressing at an incredibly slow pace. When Weiss was on a job or in Atlas they reverted to eating a lot of take out and baked goods.

“And I grabbed your scroll out of your office,” the Faunus added, gesturing to the counter with her mug, “Yang sent an awful lot of pictures.”

“As promised,” Weiss said. “Ruby’s wearing short sleeves and Yang decided to document the occasion. She said that you’d be getting some too.”

Blake gave an indistinct murmur in reply, focusing on her book as the heiress scuttled around the kitchen. Her ears unconsciously swiveled to follow her roommate’s movements, her bow long-discarded early in their fourth year. Weiss, in turn, heard her sigh in contentment as she sliced meat and vegetables for omelets. She sang softly, a snippet of a song she’d written herself.

She heard Blake close her book and felt eyes on her back. Weiss glanced over her shoulder, still dripping hair swinging behind her, “Hm?”

“Did you ever want to sing professionally?”

Weiss turned back to her work, shaking her head. “Not since I was little. My father encouraged it, but only toward a certain style, so I decided that I would only sing for myself. Or for people I don’t mind hearing.”

“So, the three of us,” referring, of course, to the rest team RWBY, “And… Winter?”

Again, Weiss shook her head. “She was never really a music person; thought it was a waste of time.” She smiled faintly. “And it was one of the only talents I had that she didn’t.”

“What about Olive? Do you ever sing for her?” Blake asked after Weiss’s girlfriend.

“Well,” Weiss said slowly, drawing out the word while she attempted to find a reply. She went with a mumbled, “We broke up.”

Anyone else would’ve taken it as a dismissal, but Blake heard exactly what she’d said. The Faunus sat upright her seat, staring at Weiss incredulously. “When did that happen?”

Weiss just worked on the omelets, pretending that she hadn’t heard.

“Weiss,” Blake said lowly. She had liked Olive (though only to an extent after the incident with the rally); they had all liked Olive, even if Weiss did seem a bit different around her.

“I thought you weren’t the type to pry,” the heiress said flippantly, darting to a cupboard to get plates.

Blake tapped her nails on the table. Weiss gathered silverware. Blake huffed in irritation. Weiss set an omelet in front of Blake and the latter grabbed the former by the wrist, her expression sympathetic. “You were together five months, Weiss. We were all expecting you two to move in together. What happened?”

The heiress sat slowly, her own plate forgotten on the counter.

“We were,” Weiss said. “Talking about moving in together,” she clarified. “She made a comment, a joke more like, about me not being gone all the time. I told her that I would be gone a lot, being a huntress and working for Schnee Dust.” Weiss put her face in her hand. “She quipped about it being fine as long I wasn’t off alone with one of you three and I asked what she meant by that. Evidently,” she continued, “She didn’t trust me around you three- or, when I asked again, you three around me.” Weiss looked pained.

“Olive was convinced that team RWBY would always be first, one way or another. Things escalated; she told me how upset she was about all the cancelled dates and missed events because I had to be there with you guys. She didn’t understand why I risked my reputation to help you with rallies or why I had to be at the hospital every time Yang inevitably overdoes it or why I go on so many jobs with Ruby and why I was so overwhelmed when she got hurt last month.

“She doesn’t know what it’s like,” Weiss muttered, tone growing angry, “What it’s like to have people you trust with your life, or to have people that would put their lives in your hands. I told her that. Olive asked if I trusted her like I trusted any of you.

“I told her no and she gave me back everything that I’d ever given her or left at her house. I sent her everything that she’d left with me,” she finished. Her whole body seemed to have crumpled in on itself; she looked absolutely exhausted.

Blake just held her hand, not saying a word.

~

“Guess who’s back,” Yang shouted as she slammed the door open. When no one responded, she glanced over her shoulder to Ruby, tanned and once again wearing sleeves.

Her sister leaned over her shoulder and called into the house, “Weiss, Blake, we’re home!”

“In here,” they heard Blake call back.

The sisters shared another glance and tossed their minimal luggage off to the side; whenever anyone came home, especially a week early, the rest of the house would run to greet them. “What do you think happened,” Yang whispered as they walked to the living room.

“Maybe someone passed away,” Ruby whispered. “Weiss’s dad is getting pretty old. Or maybe Blake’s rally went bad and someone got hurt.”

“Nah,” Yang said, “It would’ve been all over the news. Maybe they’re just tired.”

In the other room, they saw Weiss with her head on Blake’s lap, sprawled across the couch like she chided Ruby for. The TV was on, some mindless action movie and there were two empty ice cream containers on the floor, something that Weiss would normally have a conniption over.

“Break up,” the two whispered.

It was a simple matter of Yang sitting on the far end, placing Weiss’s feet in her lap while Ruby settled down in front of her, leaning her head back against Weiss’s side. “When’d you guys end it?” Ruby asked softly.

“Last Tuesday,” Weiss replied, turning to hide her face in Blake’s stomach.

“That was nearly two weeks ago and you just now told us!?” Yang demanded. She poked at the heiress’s knee, “Why didn’t you say something when I called?”

“She didn’t tell me until two days ago,” Blake added.

Yang lunged to the side, pulling Weiss up to face her, though her expression was far from angry. “Why didn’t you tell us?”

She curled in on herself. “Five months wasted,” she muttered, “Because Olive couldn’t understand how close we are. She was afraid that I was in love with one of you. Even bet that the first thing I would do was run to my team for comfort. I couldn’t bear to prove her right.”

“Oh,” Yang murmured. She just pulled Weiss closer, hugging her tight. “Well better us than her if she can get rid of you that easily.” One hand stroked loose hair.

Ruby crawled onto the couch, clinging to Weiss from the other side. “Yeah, you were probably meaner to any of us than you ever were to her.”

“Well I was stuck with you dolts,” Weiss muttered into Yang’s neck. She made no move to squirm out of the sisters’ arms.

“Still are,” Blake said softly, one hand finding purchase on her shoulder.

~

“Who did you go to anyway?” Ruby asked once the group hug had ended.

“Oh, Winter,” Weiss replied, trying not to wince visibly. She failed.

The other three joined her in said wince.

“And how did that go?” Yang asked hesitantly.

“She told me that it was probably for the best,” she relayed. “And that falling in love is a horrible idea. She _did_ try to comfort me, but I decided I’d rather listen to her complain about Qrow,” she admitted. “It was less… awkward that way.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Also, it's come to my attention that I have no idea where I'm going with Ruby and Yang's relationship. Initially, it was no Enabler. Then Enabler was definitely going to be a thing. And then it proceeded to go back and forth for a while and now my stance is, "Jump off that bridge when we get to it."
> 
> Any thoughts one way or the other? The issue approaching more quickly than I realized...


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I live!

Somehow, Weiss was the only person in the house acting normally and it was driving Yang insane.

Blake had been wherever her teammates weren’t except for during meals, in which case it was either join willingly or have Weiss drag her down to the dining room by one of four ears, if not two. Aside from those times of the day, however, Yang didn’t see her partner. She was permanently in her room or out doing _something_ that the other three weren’t invited to- not that anyone but Yang seemed to keen on being invited right about now.

And it seemed like Ruby was growing distant. Not in the same way as Blake, as she always seemed to be around. But she was quieter than usual and had developed a tendency to stare in no specific direction and zone out, her brain visibly running behind silver eyes. There would be times when Yang would say her name or wave her hand in front of her sister’s face and it would take several moments for Ruby to realize that she was being spoken to.

She’d seen Ruby act pretty oddly in their lifetime together, but this was new. Yang was used to Ruby coming to her with whatever was on her mind. She was used to knowing what was going on in her head. Not knowing was worrying her, but she didn’t have the words to address it- she couldn’t exactly say, ‘Hey, sis, you’ve been thinking more than usual, wanna tell me about that?’

Or technically she could, but Yang didn’t imagine that going over too well.

So, she turned to the one that she deemed the only sane member of team RWBY at the moment (including herself, since she felt like she was losing her damn mind).

“Any idea what’s up with Blake and Ruby?” Yang asked without preface, hopping up on the counter as Weiss went about cutting zucchini.

The heiress looked at her warily, eyes darting between the knife in her hand, the boiling water on the stove and Yang on the counter, likely trying to discern the number of ways that Yang could accidently destroy the kitchen before dinner was ready and how (and whether) such events could be prevented. Once she had sufficiently analyzed the situation, she returned to chopping. “To what, specifically, are you referring?”

“Seriously?! How have you not noticed?”

“Noticed what?”

Yang narrowed her eyes. Weiss was many things- stubborn, unnecessarily self-sacrificing, proud and so on- but she was not obtuse. She was willing to be her left kidney (which had, admittedly, taken far more damage than the right, thank you, Uncle Qrow) that Weiss knew something was off and just didn’t want to say anything in case she looked crazy. So, she tried a different tactic. “Dust, you’re perceptive,” she grumbled sarcastically.

Weiss shot her a dirty look. “I’m sorry, do you want to go get take out tonight? Because it’s not too late for me to drop the size of the meal by a quarter.”

Her threat was ignored. “I mean: you haven’t noticed how distracted Ruby’s been or how often Blake is anywhere but where we are?”

Now the defensiveness leaked out of Weiss’s posture. “I have.”

“Any idea what’s up with them?” Yang asked, echoing her earlier question. “Cause I’ve got nothing.”

The heiress was quiet for a while, silent as she finished up with the zucchini, dropped the slices in the pot and covered it with a lid. “I honestly don’t know,” Weiss admitted softly, watching the lid of the pot gathered condensation. “Do you think their behavior is connected? Maybe they had a disagreement or… I don’t know,” Weiss sighed. “I can’t remember the last time any of us had an actual fight.”

“The week before graduation,” Yang reminded her solemnly.

“Not remotely what I meant,” Weiss muttered, a bit of pink rising in her cheeks.

It hadn’t been team RWBY’s finest week. It hadn’t been anyone’s finest week, to be perfectly fair, but RWBY especially.

“I know.”

Weiss stepped back from the counter, turning away.

“Where’re you going?”

Slowly and deliberately, Weiss looked over her shoulder to cast Yang a longsuffering look. “To get the chicken,” she said in a tone normally reserved for the incredibly dumb.

Yang cleared her throat. She looked up at the ceiling and listened as Weiss opened the fridge and went about making dinner.

“Do you have any theories, or are you simply expecting me to have an answer?” Weiss asked after a bit.

“You’re the know it all- isn’t it your job to have an answer?” Yang teased, eyes still focused upward. She could feel Weiss’s glare, but continued, “It’d definitely be easier that way, but no, I’ve got nothing.”

Weiss snorted. “We appear to be on the same page, then, because I have no idea what has gotten into either of them.”

“Well you’re no help.”

“…get off the damn counter.”

~

Dinner had been such a quiet affair that Yang was ready to scream.

“Weiss, I’m going drinking. You coming?”

The heiress paused in the extraction of her wine from the refrigerator. “Why go anywhere?”

“We don’t have the good stuff here.”

“Excuse me, this is excellent wine,” Weiss protested. “It is very ‘good stuff’. And no,” she said preemptively, “good does not mean ‘gets you drunk fast’.”

“Fine, we don’t have gets you drunk fast stuff,” Yang amended. “Are you coming with me or not? I’m meeting up with Sable; they’re taking the night since they nailed their midterms.”

Weiss’s mouth twisted in a frown. “Do you remember what happened last time we went drinking together?”

“Neither of us do.”

With a deep breath, Weiss said patiently, “Precisely. And now we have tattoos that we don’t remember requesting, one hundred and eighteen lien long gone and the memory of the worst headaches of our respective lives.”

Yang gave her an unrepentant grin. “Imagine what we could get up to this time!”

“You know what? Sure, whatever, let’s go.”

~

When Ruby came downstairs, Blake was the only person in sight, her golden eyes flashing in the darkness of the room, lit by the dim light of the television. She blinked a few times when she saw Ruby.

“Hey, Blake,” she greeted in a near whisper. “What’s with all the lights? Or, you know, lack of all the lights.”

“Horror game,” Blake responded, shifting where she sat, one shoulder rising a few inches. “Had to do it right.” Her eyes darted down to her controller.

Ruby hated horror games. She hated the helplessness and inability to retaliate- she was a huntress and if she wanted to bash a bad guy in the face she would. But… she hadn’t spent much time with Blake recently.

“Mind if I join you?” she asked, offering her sweetest smile, the one that often led to the two of them watching cheesy action movies while eating ice cream from the carton at three in the morning.

She watched as Blake’s ears twitched and her mouth tilted slightly. They were subtle movements, but she recognized that Blake _really_ wanted to say no. However, Blake just shrugged and turned her focus on the television, face going carefully blank as Ruby dashed upstairs.

Ruby hung a left, bolting into her and Yang’s shared room to retrieve a few specific items. She was sliding back down the railing before Blake had been alone two minutes, a pillow tucked under one arm and a blanket wrapped around her shoulders.

Now, she actually seemed to have Blake’s attention, a faint smile crossing the Faunus’ lips as Ruby settled into the corner of the couch, choosing to give Blake a bit of space. “I didn’t know we were having a slumber party,” Blake murmured, one cat ear turned in Ruby’s direction to better catch her reply, though the other was firmly pointed toward the tv, listening for sound cues.

Despite Blake not being able to see it, Ruby grinned at her. “Aren’t we kinda always having a sleepover?” She tugged the blanket up to cover the top of her head; easier to pull it down over her eyes that way. “What’s this game about, anyway?”

“A girl whose father disappeared in southern Vacuo, looking into rumors of a new type of Grimm. Looks like it’s going to be a Grimm-worshiping cult or a human-Grimm hybrid kind of thing; nothing too original, but the main character is complex and the ambiance is great.” From Blake, this was a ringing endorsement.

“This one gonna make you cry too?” Ruby teased, alluding to the last game Blake got invested in.

Blake did not dignify that with a response, though her ears flattened in memory.

Even irritated, Blake was cute.

Ruby let silence take over as Blake’s character navigated the treacherous Vacuo badlands, body tense as the girl waded through knee deep water (which Ruby knew for a fact held some very dangerous water snakes in real life). She found herself watching her friend more than the screen, taking in the flicking ears, twisted mouth and determined set of her jaw.

There was a loud crack, resounding through the room over the sound of water and quiet breaths. Both of them jumped, Ruby squeaking in surprise and yanking the blanket down over her face which was promptly shoved into her pillow, her arms wrapping securely around it.

For the first time in a while, she heard Blake laugh. “It was just a jump scare,” Blake told her gently, though the amusement was clear in her voice. “Nothing scary.”

“Jump _scare_ ,” Ruby echoed, voice muffled against the pillow. She heard another soft chuckle and then the sloshing of water continued. Slowly, she began removing herself from her makeshift hiding spot to peek at out her friend.

Naturally, the moment she popped out, both Blake and the character swore as something leapt from the water, blurring the screen and leaving the protagonist screaming.

Ruby abandoned the pillow, diving forward to shove her face between the couch and Blake’s back.

Blake grunted at the sudden and none too gentle contact, but made no effort to move Ruby as she mashed buttons and insulted the attacker’s looks and birth status. Ruby whined into Blake until the mashing ended and she heard the protagonist loudly gasping for air between wondering aloud what just jumped her. The ambient noises stopped abruptly and so did the pressure of Blake leaning against her head.

“Ruby,” she said slowly.

The woman in question smiled at her sheepishly. “Blake.” When Blake only stared at her, she gingerly withdrew to her corner of the couch, pillow once again firmly in her grasp, though the blanket had fallen on the floor. “Sorry,” she said after a bit.

The Faunus sighed, resuming the game, though she returned to keeping an ear on Ruby as she played. “I know you hate horror games.”

“And?”

Another sigh. “And why are you here?”

“It’s one of life’s great mysteries.”

This time, she got a groan instead. “Ruby,” she said warningly, though it carried exasperation rather than anger.

“You’ve been in your room a lot,” she said. “I miss hanging out with you.”

There was a pause, followed by a hard swallow and a quiet, “Sorry.” Blake entered a house, only half-heartedly looking around, her attention mostly on Ruby now.

“I guess you don’t wanna talk about it.”

“Not really,” Blake murmured.

“But there _is_ something to talk about,” Ruby hedged.

Blake curled in on herself again, opening a book on screen, but clearly not actually reading anything. “Not yet.”

“Okay.”

At last, Blake physically turned to look at her. “Okay? That’s it?”

Ruby gave her a sardonic smile. “Even if I interrogated you, you wouldn’t say anything, so I might as well respect your privacy. Just… don’t pull a Weiss and keep it to yourself when you’re ready to talk, okay?”

“I’ll try,” Blake told her softly, fingers coming up to tug on the ends of her hair. “But Ruby- I- I’m scared.”

Her first instinct was to ask, ‘of what’ but she went with her second. “We’re here for you,” Ruby promised, “no matter what you’re scared of.”

Blake didn’t look too convinced.

“Whenever you’re ready,” Ruby reminded her. “Not before, not when we want to know, when you’re ready. If you ever are,” she added. “Now, what’s that diary say?”

Blake managed a smile and began reading the diary aloud.

~

Yang slumped back in the booth, watching as Weiss post-four shots, several glasses of wine and a mug of spiced mead, moved with liquid grace over to the bar to pay off their tab. There was a half-drunk bottle of beer in one hand and Weiss’s high heels in the other, the latter of which was held in a much steadier grip.

“Dude,” Sable drawled, pointing at her with their long empty bottle, “you are so wrapped around her finger.”

“She’s scary,” Yang countered, managing to only slur a little bit. “You’d hold her shoes too if she asked.”

Sable giggled. “Yeah, but ‘chu jumped t’ do it. Yesssh Weiss, o’ course Weiss.”

“I don’t wanna hear it from you, light weight. You’re fricken drunk off of a shot and two beers.”

“I don’t drink, you mingy lush,” they grumbled, drawing out the ‘sh’ sound.

Yang snorted. “Use real words, Mes. master’s degree.”

“When you take your eyes off Weiss’s ass.”

She slammed the bottle down on the table, making Sable (and several unsuspecting patrons) jump. “Shut up,” she hissed. “Don’t joke about that!”

Sable flinched, looking oddly sober and sad. “Yang…”

The blonde closed her eyes, leaning back into the booth. “I know,” she whispered, too low for anyone but the Faunus in proximity to hear. “I know you weren’t.”

When Weiss returned, neither of them would look at each other.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's been taking so long to update- I promise that I haven't given up on this story, but there have been some circumstances that led to me all but pulling teeth to make the words go. I apologize ahead of time if this chapter seems a little off, hope you enjoyed it either way :)
> 
> PS: 'Mes.' translates to what I've started using as a formal non-binary title, Messere. I've started writing too many NB characters not to come up with _something_. If you've heard of other one's, feel free to let me know!


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Every word was a fight, but I'm happy with how it turned out.

Consciousness came slowly. Light seemed to be pressing against Ruby’s eyelids, a sensation far less pleasant than the weight in her lap or the feeling of… something gently combing over her scalp, lighting up nerves in just the right way and making her sigh contentedly in her half-awakened state. The touch stopped abruptly and Ruby whined, just a bit, at the loss.

There was a quiet noise, something between a snort and a sigh, and the soothing motion continued.

Her eyes blinked open, slowly taking in the room around her. It appeared that she had fallen asleep on the couch and, upon looking down, that Yang had fallen asleep on her. Wild, golden locks spilled across her lap like a blanket, covering both herself and the person stroking her hair. Slowly, so as not to end the action once more, Ruby shifted to look at her companion.

Weiss wore a soft, unguarded expression that looked almost blank save for the curled corners of her lips. The area under her eyes were dark with exhaustion, as they always seemed to be these days. “Good morning,” she whispered, sharp eyes glancing down at Yang as if to make a point.

“Morning,” Ruby replied, still partially asleep. She didn’t dare ask why Weiss was combing her hair; if she did, Weiss would stop and that was the last thing she wanted. “Have fun last night?” Internally, Ruby noted that Weiss’s nails felt longer than usual and wondered why she was growing them out all of a sudden- not that she was complaining, since it felt far better when they were long.

The heiress’s brow furrowed slightly, but smoothed before Ruby could read her expression properly; it wasn’t unlikely that Weiss was still half-asleep as well. “We did,” she murmured, fingers never stilling. “We laughed a lot. And learned that Sable it a lightweight.” There was another half-snort/half-sigh, followed by an amused, “They were a mess.” She paused and added, blandly, “Not that you would understand.”

It was true: the one time that Ruby had gotten her hands on alcohol (her dad still brought that up whenever he was grumpy with Qrow), her metabolism had burned it up like it was nothing. Better than dealing with those hangovers that Yang and Weiss talked about, in Ruby’s opinion. It tasted gross anyway, something that Blake agreed with her on.

Ruby just smiled in response and turned her head so that she could lean slightly against Weiss.

“What are you, a cat?” she muttered, but didn’t stop.

Ruby made a purring noise and this time she earned a chuckle from her partner.

In her mind, she had begun mulling over the situation with Blake, who disappeared shortly after the tipsy pair had returned, though she’d had the decency to murmur a goodnight and bring some water bottles into the room, which Weiss appreciated. Yang had already been asleep in Ruby’s lap, likely from the moment she sprawled across both her sister and the couch.

She’d promised Blake not to pry, but no promise could keep her from worrying, like she did every time that Blake withdrew from the group. The incidents had been fewer and further in between as the four of them matured alongside their bonds, but Blake was an extreme introvert and sometimes she just had to be alone to think something through, which Ruby understood. But that didn’t make her hate it any less; helplessness just had that affect on her.

“Ruby,” Weiss murmured, pulling her from her thoughts. She always felt like she was drowning in them these days.

Her head turned inquisitively. “Yeah?”

Weiss’s thumb grazed her temple as she swiped some hair away from her face, expression difficult to read, even with years of practice. “You’ve seemed… distracted lately.”

“I’ve been thinking,” Ruby conceded.

Her partner leaned forward a bit, as if they were about to exchange a secret. “Can you tell me what about?” She looked uncertain, like she was afraid to intrude.

“It’s just a little… what’s the word…” she trailed off for a second before declaring, “Introspection!”

In her lap, Yang groaned. “Loud,” she whined, shoving her face into Ruby’s stomach and mumbling in coherently.

“Sorry,” Ruby whispered.

Weiss sighed. “I’m going to make breakfast. You might want to get Yang to the bathroom.”

Ruby’s eyes widened at the implication.

~

“Are you sure that greasy food is the best way to go?” Blake asked tentatively, even as she stirred the potatoes as Weiss had requested.

She’d been up for less than twenty minutes, awakened by the sound of feet pounding upstairs followed by the sound of wet retching. It wasn’t until she poked her head in to hold her roommate’s hair back that she realized it was Ruby vomiting and not Yang or Weiss; apparently Ruby had a sympathetic gag reflex. You learn something new every day, she supposed.

After tying Ruby’s hair back as best as possible and pouring her some mouthwash, she ventured downstairs. She didn’t see Yang, but she could hear her whining pitifully from the ground floor’s bathroom and decided not to test her own gag reflex, stepping into the kitchen where she could hear Weiss shuffling around.

Weiss didn’t look up from flipping the bacon. “Absolutely. I know that Yang prefers the ‘hair of dog’ method, but since the only alcohol we have in the house is my wine, this is the next best alternative.”

Blake had to ask. “How do you know?”

“I have been going to my father’s parties and fundraisers and other business gatherings since I was old enough to know to keep my mouth shut in public and I’ve found, over the last six years, that alcohol numbs the nonsense. Assume that I know how to take care of a hangover.”

“Since you were fifteen?” Blake murmured.

The heiress rolled her eyes. “Trust me, of all the rich, bored brats there, I had the healthiest coping mechanisms.”

“That’s frightening.” Especially considering some of her favorite ones involved working until she couldn’t see straight, training to the point of exhaustion and starting arguments.

Weiss laughed at that. “Indeed, it is.” She finished off the bacon, scooping the strips of pork onto an already well-laden plate and pausing to turn down the heat on that particular burner.

Blake watched out of the corner of her eye as Weiss went about making scrambled eggs. Her ears flicked back as Ruby climbed downstairs, opting out of sliding this time, but her head didn’t turn, instead watching as Weiss poured the mixture of eggs and milk into the bacon pan. More grease.

She couldn’t help wondering if it was an older remedy or something that sprouted over her and Yang’s first adventure in drinking. To this day she couldn’t forget that morning that Weiss and Yang tumbled into their room, exhausted, confused and carrying a ten-pound bag of fast food. She’d known that Yang was a big eater and that Ruby was even more so, but the sight of Weiss devouring two double bacon cheeseburgers within twenty minutes would never not impress and mildly disgust her- or her teammates, apparently.

What did she see in these lunatics?

“That smells good,” Ruby mumbled as she came into the kitchen. She slipped past Weiss to grab a glass and filled it with water from the sink. She down the whole thing and filled it again, and then slipped up behind Blake, pressing her face into her hair and whispering, “Thanks, Blake.” Her arms, wiry and strong, wrapped around Blake’s waist and held her tightly.

“Those potatoes should be done, Blake,” Weiss informed her. Taking a cue from Ruby, she added, “And thanks for the help. Cooking is a lot easier with a few extra hands. Ruby, could you set the table?”

“On it,” Ruby reported, though she didn’t remove herself from Blake just yet. She leaned up on her toes, the smell of mint mouthwash prominent, and pressed a kiss to the Faunus’ cheek. Now, she did as Weiss had asked.

Internally, Blake admitted that they were sweet lunatics.

Weiss shifted and Blake glanced over to see her arching an eyebrow.

Blake turned off the burner and found a bowl for the potatoes, moving around Weiss and Ruby smoothly, never colliding in their respective chores. Four years of combat training together and nothing ever had to be said; they were all uncannily aware of each others’ movements and intentions. It made battle a breeze, as was to be expected, but she’d never considered that they would be utilizing that particular skill in making a meal.

Yang showed up last, as she was wont to do. Like Ruby, Blake could hear her approaching, but made no observance of it, instead placing the potato pan in the sink and starting some hot water for her tea.

“Yang, I know you made a mess of your shirt, but it wouldn’t take much to go upstairs and put on another one,” Ruby said with exaggerated patience.

Blake did not let herself look, already knowing what she would see.

“C’mon Rubes, the food’s almost ready and it’s nothing you guys haven’t seen.”

No kidding; Sun’s abs had nothing on Yang’s. Blake’s gaze remained firmly on the pot, lest she get caught staring. Even surrounded by beautiful, powerful people, she had yet to get over the sight of Yang: prominent curves and hair straight out of a salon advertisement alongside toned arms and an eight pack- a striking mixture of strength and femininity.

“I’ve seen enough,” Weiss said primly. “No one’s eating at my table half dressed.”

Yang grumbled, but sulked out of the room and up the stairs.

By the time she was back, the table was lain out and everyone was waiting patiently. She snagged her empty glass off the table and the other three began passing the food around. A quiet murmur rose as Weiss and Ruby began chatting and Blake inquired after Yang’s nausea.

“I’m doing better now,” Yang relayed, filling her glass halfway with orange juice. “I just went a little overboard last night.” She put the juice away and reached back into the fridge.

Blake’s eyes widened as her partner withdrew Weiss’s bottle of wine. “Yang,” she warned softly.

“Yeah, Blake?” she asked innocently as she began adding the expensive vintage to her juice.

Breakfast turned into a shouting match the moment Weiss took notice.

~

“So, about that introspection…”

After doing all of the dishes and promising another bottle of wine, Yang had been forgiven, but she had retreated to her room for the morning, with Ruby at her side. Blake was a bit better today, sitting in Weiss’s ‘office’ and double checking her reports when she wasn’t fielding pointless calls.

Ruby glanced over at Yang, looking away from her novel. “Sorry about that; I didn’t mean to wake you up.” She set the book down, wide open so that the spine popped in protest and turned on her side to look at where Yang was sprawled across her side of the beds, still shoved together from Ruby’s injury a few months back. “I guess you want to know what it’s about.”

“If you feel comfortable telling me,” Yang said hesitantly. “You know that you can trust me with anything, right? There’s nothing you could be thinking that would make me stop loving you.”

Ruby swallowed hard at that, guilt washing over her. “I know,” she whispered. “But… it’s not something that makes sense to me- I don’t want you guys worried about nothing.”

Yang turned on her side, mirroring Ruby. “Whatever is bothering you isn’t nothing.”

“I guess not,” she mumbled. “I’ve just been thinking…” she trailed off once more.

Her sister didn’t push, or prod or pry, just waited without complaint, violet eyes showing nothing but warmth. “Take your time, Rubes.”

“I’ve been think that… maybe I’m not asexual.”

It ached, deep in her chest and in her gut, the idea that they were all right; she met the right person and that was all it took. After defending her sexuality for so long, after bonding with other ace people and affirming their validity and standing by them, it was all wrong.

Yang looked confused. “You look like it hurts.” She reached out swiping away a tear that Ruby hadn’t noticed falling. “There’s nothing wrong with mistaking your sexuality; for a while, with Azura, I was convinced I was gay. You and dad accepted that. When we broke up and I met Cole, I was convinced that Azura was a one off thing and I was straight. It took a while, and some words from Qrow, to put two and two together. It’s fine if you judged yourself too quickly.”

“But they were right! They were all right! I found the right pe- person and now I’m physically attracted to them; just like people always told me I would be,” Ruby whimpered. “They were right.”

“Well, just because you like someone physically now, doesn’t mean you’re allosexual.”

Ruby blinked a few times. “Huh?”

“When Qrow put the idea of bisexuality into my head, I did some research,” Yang started.

“You? Researching?”

Yang chuckled. “I know, right? Anyway,” her tone quickly became serious, “I learned that a lot of people aren’t as black and white as we like to think; I’m proof of that, as is Sable.” Ruby nodded slowly. “There’s a such thing as demisexual, where people don’t feel physical attraction until they’re emotionally bonded with them. How close are you with this person?”

“I… I think I love them.”

“And before that?”

“Nothing.”

“Look, Ruby. I’m not saying you are and I’m not saying you aren’t, but you’re allowed to love this person and you’re allowed to be attracted to them,” Yang told her. “Dad, Qrow, our team and all of our friends aren’t going to judge you or stop loving you because you were wrong about your interests. And one person won’t invalidate an entire sexual orientation.”

Ruby tackled her as best she could, shoving her face into Yang’s collarbone and sobbing in relief.

~

Yang watched Ruby, now all cried out, sleep for a while. There were tear tracks on her cheeks and a bit of snot under her nose, but she seemed ultimately peaceful. Far more peaceful than Yang’s mind, at least.

She disengaged herself from Ruby as gently as possible to retrieve her scroll. For nearly twenty minutes, her brain was focused entirely on a job hunt; anything to get her mind off of this.

She didn’t want to think about Ruby being in love. She didn’t want to think about who her sister was in love with. She didn’t want to think about the possibility that she felt the same about that person, that she might do something stupid to get in the way of that relationship, that she was going to do something stupid and lose both of them- all three of them.

There! A job caught her eye: a few skilled hunters required to take out a sea Grimm off the coast of Patch.

With a little persuasion and some careful maneuvering, she could easily set Ruby up on that job- with Blake at her side. That would be perfect.

Once Ruby was with Blake, Yang would drop all interest in her. She refused to think about the possibility of holding an interest in her sister’s girlfriend.

Then she only had to deal with Weiss…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope that conversation between Ruby and Yang wasn't too awkward. I'm not on the ace spectrum, but I have had to cope with the idea that maybe I was not bisexual, but gay, and that tore twelve year old me to pieces, when I was under the impression that being bi would let me 'pretend to be normal'.
> 
> Let me know what you think!
> 
> Edit: Holy shit, 150 kudos? How did I miss that?! You people are the fucking best <3 Also, did anyone else cry over the full version of 'Let's Just Live'?


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here, have a Blake-centric chapter. Don't worry though, the other three should get moments in the next chapter, if not their own chapters in the near future.
> 
> Thank you for all the thoughtful comments and kudos. They make the critic in me calm down, knowing that people like what I do, something that I imagine other writers/artists/musicians etc. can understand :)
> 
> PS: I have a couple other things in the works- see the end notes for more info.

Blake’s favorite thing about Pyrrha was her patience. Though there were many other notable traits, like her kindness, honesty and integrity, her patience was what brought Blake back to her time and time again. Like Ruby, Pyrrha never pushed, just waited until she was ready to speak. Right now, Blake tapped her fingers against her cup of tea, struggling to find the right words.

In this instance, Pyrrha sat across from Blake with a steaming mug in her hands, eyes shut in a peaceful manner as she enjoyed the scent of rosehips and hibiscus rising from her tea. She was unbothered by Blake’s silence despite the emergency meeting that had been called at Pyrrha and Jaune’s shared apartment. The young professor simply sat back and allowed Blake the time to gather her thoughts and translate them into words, all the while letting her sample her collection of teas.

Tea was one of the many things they bonded over, alongside late-night study sessions and a love of literature, though Blake’s taste was decidedly more… explicit than Pyrrha’s.

Blake hadn’t said a word since she got in ten minutes ago and decided just to speak and let the pieces fall where they may. “Yang thinks Ruby is in love with me.”

Pyrrha’s eyes snapped open in surprise and she raised her eyebrows, tilting her head inquisitively. And ultimately waited for what her friend had to say next.

“I don’t know if she’s right or not,” Blake admitted, “but she’s convinced Weiss of it. Ruby doesn’t hang out with a lot of people: she hasn’t spent a lot of time around Jaune lately, so he’s out of the question and Ren and Nora… according to Yang that’s just not a possibility and it can’t be Sable- even if she was interested in them, they’re not interested in women.”

“Why didn’t she think it was Weiss?”

Blake snorted. “Weiss just got out of a relationship and, according to Yang, Ruby would never pursue her while she’s vulnerable like that- not that Weiss appreciated the implication that she was ever vulnerable.” They both laughed a little at that.

“So, what are you going to do?” Pyrrha asked her.

Blake heard the door open and close, with a call of greeting from Jaune, but Pyrrha’s eyes never left hers. The clear warmth and understanding spurred her to continue with little thought of the new arrival.

“I’m going to tell Ruby that I’m in love with her,” Blake said evenly.

There was a high-pitched noise of confusion from the other room.

“Not now, Jaune,” Pyrrha called in, what Blake assumed was, her teacher voice. She cut Blake a look, silently offering to remove her partner from the situation. Knowing her, she might scruff him and physically toss him out, too.

Blake only continued, fearing that she might not get the words out if she waited. “And I’m going to let her know that I feel the same about Weiss and Yang.”

There was a shrill, “I’ll come back later?!” And the door slammed shut. Blake couldn’t help but smile despite the circumstances. She was looking forward to the conversation that would likely ensue once he was allowed back in- specifically, Pyrrha having that conversation with him, while Blake watched with a grave expression that would make Jaune squirm.

“You’re sure,” Pyrrha murmured. Not a question, just an observation.

“No…”

Pyrrha chuckled, one hand coming up to cover her budding grin. “Oh, Blake.” Her laughter quickly faded though, and she reached across the table to brush Blake’s hand.

It had taken years for Blake to get used to touch, especially after Adam, but between her teammates and other good friends, she’d grown not only accepting, but quite fond of it. And Pyrrha, for all of her fans and admirers, had never received much physical contact once she began displaying her talents. Blake didn’t know the whole story, but her parents were her managers first and family second; she couldn’t imagine that they took Pyrrha’s decision to teach very well. In the end, the two of them were a lonely, touch starved pair.

Blake’s hand unwound from the mug to curl around Pyrrha’s and softly preempted the question she knew Pyrrha would ask. “And yes, I will tell her this, even if she’s in love with someone else. Ruby’s one of my best friends and… and I want her to know. If there’s anyone on my team I can count on to help me move on from this, it’s her.” Blake smiled sadly. “She’s a natural problem solver, you know.”

Pyrrha didn’t ask after her reasoning, possibly having put Blake’s thought process together. Weiss was no good at emotions and, as Yang pointed out, was just out of a long-term relationship; this wasn’t the time to bring this up to her, but maybe one day. And Yang- Blake loved Yang every bit as much as the other two, but she was impulsive, hardheaded and seemed determined that Ruby was in love with her. And if Ruby _was_ … at best Yang would distance herself and at worst… Blake didn’t want to consider. Losing her friendship would be devastating.

“This isn’t something you can take back.” Pyrrha’s voice wavered slightly, no doubt contemplating her relationship with Jaune.

“Good,” Blake said, taking a firm tone. “Because I’ve been dealing with this for long enough. I can’t keep ignoring it- if I do, I’ll never move on.”

The grip on her hand tightened. “But will you be able to recover? If she says no, I mean.”

Blake’s lips twitched. “I have to. No matter what, I’m going to have to keep moving on.”

Pyrrha’s free hand came up to rake through her hair. “You make it sound so easy,” she breathed.

“It won’t be and it shouldn’t be.”

“I guess not.”

~

Ruby and Blake forwent an airship, instead opting for a boat. It was cheaper, less likely to earn Blake funny looks and Ruby just liked boats, something that Blake was more than happy to indulge.

“It reminds me of fishing trips, during school breaks,” Ruby told her companion. “Dad had a few friends around Patch and some of them were nice enough to lend us a little ship so that the three of us- and sometimes Uncle Qrow- could spend a few days on the ocean. Dad and Qrow told stories, Yang and I got sun burns no matter how much sunscreen we used and we threw back everything we could, since Qrow and I hate fish. Of course, Yang and dad like to go out for sushi.” Ruby finished her rambling with a wrinkled nose.

The pair had slipped outside the slightly crowded indoors where most of the passengers hid from the rapidly chilling weather. Neither liked large groups much, but both could handle the cold, even if Blake preferred to avoid it. After their third-year adventure to the remains of Mantle, all of them could stand a little fall wind.

Blake resisted the urge to kiss her on the forehead or nose, instead asking, “What’s wrong with fish?” in a mock defensive tone.

“Have you caught fresh fish? It smells awful! And the texture is so weird! It’s just-” Ruby proceeded to make an odd, enthusiastic gesture that Blake was willing to bet spawned from a rambling, drunk Qrow. “You know?”

The Faunus raised an eyebrow purposefully, knowing exactly how Ruby felt about that expression- apparently it was mocking in a quiet, enigmatic way, something that Weiss and Yang agreed with her on.

Ruby pouted and gave her a light jab to the arm. “You’re the worst,” she mumbled, slumping against the railing and watching the sea ripple and foam.

“I thought I was your favorite,” Blake teased. She rested an elbow on the rail and her jaw on her fist, head tipped to watch Ruby, the way the late autumn wind whipped up her hair and the occasional tiny droplets of seawater splashed all the way up to her face, hanging off tendrils of hair and eyelashes.

“I changed my mind,” Ruby said. “Weiss is my favorite, now.”

“Does that make Yang your least favorite? Or me?”

Ruby pretended to think about that, finger tapping her lower lip a few times. “You,” she decided. “Definitely you.”

“How will I ever sleep at night?” Blake deadpanned.

~

Blake hadn’t thought to ask until disembarking, but she decided to do so late rather than never. “Ruby,” she murmured.

Ruby paused her scanning through the small crowd- several Patch natives commuted to Vale for the weekdays, often finding more ambitious and higher paying jobs in the capital rather than a small town that relied on fishing and transport. “Yeah, Blake?”

“Should I be wearing my bow around here?” Even in a town affiliated to a semi-tolerant kingdom could still be judgmental. Vacuo was the only place where discrimination couldn’t stand a majority of the time.

“Blake…” Ruby murmured, looking upset. “You never have to hide- not here, not anywhere.”

The Faunus shook her head. “That didn’t answer the question.” Her ears flicked a few times and flattened, feeling, for the first time, very naked without her bow. And, while Taiyang had never given her trouble the few times they had met, each time had been too dangerous to worry about something as small as her secondary ears.

Ruby’s expression did a one-eighty, going from pained to determined immediately. “Fine, the answer is no. Because if you ever feel the need to wear your bow, I will fight anyone or anything makes you feel that way. Yang and Weiss will help, too.”

At that, Blake couldn’t help a laugh. “I believe you there.” Her ears slowly returned to their forward-facing position and Ruby grinned up at her. Her heart jumped.

“Hey- Ruby! Blake!” Their heads turned simultaneously to a towering, suntanned man waving erratically at them.

“Dad!” Ruby’s serious words were completely forgotten as she tackled her father full speed, something that would have knocked a majority of people flat on their backs. Instead, he had scooped her up in both arms and gave her a playful spin with her excess momentum.

It was sweet to watch, the way she clutched at his shoulders and babbled a mile a minute and he held her up in front of him like she was ten rather than just short of twenty. He grinned all the while, nodding eagerly along with her torrent of words and excited noises, as if they didn’t talk three times a week and he didn’t know most of this already.

Slowly, Blake approached, Ruby’s backpack over one shoulder and her messenger bag hanging off the other. Luckily, she was with the second lightest traveler in the group, right behind herself. Trying to drag Yang or Weiss’s bags would have been something of a fight.

Taiyang set Ruby on the ground lightly, quickly turning to Blake. “Here, let me at least take my daughter’s bag,” he said quickly. “I know that two outta three of my teammates would have shot me as soon as carried anything of mine.” The words were said with a grin and the faintest inflection of bitterness.

Blake handed over the backpack, smiling faintly. “Not a concern with Team RWBY. The only time it comes to shooting is when we’re arguing over whose dish night it is.”

He laughed, loud and earnest. “No kidding? Sounds exactly like every night since she,” he ruffled Ruby’s hair, “and her sister had to start doing chores.” He tossed the bright red bag up on his shoulder and waved again, this time in the direction away from the port. “You two ready to go? Or do you need another intense conversation in public first?” he asked lightly.

Blake flushed, ducking her head slightly as she and Ruby followed him.

“I was telling Blake that if anyone gave her trouble for being a Faunus, I would fight them.”

“That’s my girl,” Taiyang said proudly.

The drive was an easy one, no awkward silences to be had. Where Ruby could fumble in conversation even when eager, Taiyang had the gift of gab, drawing out Blake’s opinions and thoughts on whatever matter that the other two brought up. More often than not, she found herself smiling as she listened and responded.

The old truck they rode in rattled and grumbled, but neither Ruby nor Taiyang seemed phased, talking over the noise, either not noticing or blatantly ignoring the strange sounds. Blake, personally, was relieved when they came to a stop.

It was a charming house, the landscaping neat and surrounded by natural landscape, free and unkempt. In the garage, Blake saw another motorcycle. If she also saw Taiyang toss Ruby the keys to said motorcycle, she decided not to think too hard about it- and be sure never to mention it to Weiss or Qrow lest they murder Taiyang. She’d decided that he was one of the better adults she’d interacted with and would like him to continue living.

He gave Blake a brief tour of the house, ending with, “You two can share or one of you can take Yang’s room- I’m sure she wouldn’t mind.” He paused and glanced between the two for a moment. “So, when are you two needed for the job?”

“The sooner the better, I imagine,” Blake replied.

Taiyang grinned at Ruby. “Best take Dragonfly, then.”

Ruby punched the air. “Yeeeeessss!” The keys were still in her hand.

“Tell me that you’re not talking about the motorcycle Ruby doesn’t have a license to drive.”

They both just smiled at her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, I've started on two different projects. One is a multichapter fic in which Weiss takes over the company shortly after graduation, taking place five years into her being CEO. I have a couple of ships in mind, but nothing set in stone, since Weiss's growth is going to be the focus (probably) of the story.
> 
> And then I have a kind-of dating sim? I mean, it's a text based game in which the reader is essentially the main character: you pick your gender, interests, skills etc. I have three romance options lined up (Weiss, Blake and Pyrrha) and a basic plot outlined to six out of eight chapters, all of which have different branches and consequential choices and actions. It'll be revolving around the treatment of Faunus in Vale, the main character/reader's relationships and goals and the life of whichever character the reader takes interest in. If it gets enough interest once I've put out the first few chapters, I'll start adding romance options (any suggestions?) and opening up possibilities.
> 
> Anyone interested in either of these projects?


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so fucking tired, but this chapter wouldn't let me be, so here you go.
> 
> Also, that third section was written to 'Glass' by Thompson Square. That song just gives me the feels in the best ways.

The so-called sea beast had been less than impressive, less than ten feet long and relatively weak, but such were the waters of Patch. Ruby assumed the only reason an actual job was put up was because any Grimm was a big deal for the area.

 _But_ , Ruby was far from disheartened. Yang put the idea in her head that she and Blake could use a vacation- or any reason to get them alone together, really. She’d been nudging them together as subtly as Yang could. Which meant not subtle at all- not that Ruby minded. She needed to talk to Blake and some time away from Yang to get her brain in order.

Now would be an excellent time to get her thoughts- feelings- off her chest. Well, not now-now.

Ruby sighed contently as the gentle waves washed up to her ankles, the chilly water sending tingles all the way up her legs. Meanwhile, Blake fidgeted at the sensation, shifting her weight and glancing over to give Ruby a hesitant look. Naturally, Ruby shot her a smile and grabbed her hand, keeping her anchored in one spot.

A couple of expressions ran across Blake’s face, few of which Ruby caught. In the end, she paid it little mind, smile only broadening as Blake linked their fingers together.

“What do you think Weiss and Yang are up to?” Ruby queried, beginning to swing their connected hands back and forth.

Blake’s eyes fell shut and her ears twitched to follow the sounds of the water as she thought- was she doing it consciously? “Hm… Yang is either gaming on the couch, pestering Weiss in her office or out bugging Pyrrha. Weiss is either being dragged into whatever Yang is doing or being pestered.”

“They’ve gotten pretty close over the years,” Ruby commented.

“Yeah, never thought they’d get that close.” She glanced back to Ruby, holding her gaze for a moment. “I never thought any of us would be this close.” There was something tired and aching in her tone.

Anything Ruby could say was cut off by a brief shiver as more water hit them. She put off her words, her questions and hopes. “Hey, let’s get into town. I know a place that serves good food- and an awesome clam chowder in a bread bowl.”

Blake didn’t hesitate to follow Ruby back off the beach and up to Dragonfly- a name that Ruby had decided on the day Taiyang promised both of them their own bike when they got older.

“I thought you didn’t like fish,” Blake said idly.

“Doesn’t count,” Ruby chirped. She sat down briefly on Dragonfly to wipe her feet on her pants legs, making sure they were dry before she pulled her socks and boots on. “I mean, I know it’s sea food and all, but it’s really good. Also, bread bowls make everything better, especially when they’re made fresh every day and nice and hot.” Her gaze got distant for a second.

The Faunus chuckled, but conceded, “It does sound really good. Let’s go- my treat.”

“ _My_ treat,” Ruby corrected, pulling her helmet on. “Mrs. Elm likes me- a few good hunting stories and we’ll be eating for free.”

“If you say so.” Blake settled behind Ruby on the motorcycle, arms wrapping around her waist.

Ruby’s stomach flipped and her face heated. She started her bike and took off- just a little too fast- down the path back to the main roads. Her brain had fuzzed a tiny bit when she first road with Blake, especially once Blake ducked her head down and pressed her cheek to Ruby’s shoulder blade. It was funny, Ruby thought as she navigated her way to the main street, that touching Blake had been evoking this reaction from her for months now and only after accepting that it was physical attraction did it start getting to her.

She wondered if her dad noticed her excess pressure on the gas earlier. Probably. One part of her hoped he would attribute it to her eagerness and the other… the other hoped he’d ask and give her someone to talk to before attempting to confront Blake about her feelings- the ones she understood and the ones she definitely didn’t. Or… maybe not the latter.

Neither of them bothered speaking over the wind and roaring engine, giving them a little time to organize their thoughts. The ride didn’t give either of them enough time.

Heads turned as Ruby pulled up and parked alongside the sidewalk. When she pulled her helmet off, whispers rose up, many eyes recognizing a local celebrity- not many left Patch and even fewer were actual heroes. And it didn’t hurt that there was pretty Faunus woman pressed up against her.

Both dismounted and ignored the murmurs as they headed inside.

The restaurant- Marina’s Home Cooking- was every bit as warm and welcoming as Ruby remembered. People were chatting and laughing softly in their booths, the young man up front was making conversation with a man likely waiting for someone to show, light music played through it all and the whole place smelled of mouthwatering food.

“Seems like a nice place,” Blake commented.

Ruby grinned brightly at her. “I knew you would.” She hadn’t, but she’d hoped. Ruby caught Blake’s hand and pulled her up to the young man that would be seating them. “Hey, Gorm, is Marina in today?”

“Ruby,” he said, looking surprised at the sight of her. He blinked a few times before finally answering, “Yeah, she’s in.”

“Well, tell her I say ‘hi’,” Ruby told him. “Also, can I get a table for two?” She tilted her head at Blake.

Gorm’s eyes dropped to their hands, rose to glance at Blake’s ears and then focused on Ruby. “Um, yes, of course.” He grabbed two menus from a massive stack and quickly escorted them to a booth near one corner of the restaurant, lit more by artificial light than daylight like those closer to the front of the restaurant.

He offered drinks, took them down and was gone before Ruby could strike up any sort of talk.

Ruby’s mouth twisted slightly. “Half the island is going to be talking about me and my Faunus girlfriend by nightfall,” she said sagely. She didn’t miss the way Blake practically jumped at ‘girlfriend’.

“And if you told Marina I wasn’t your girlfriend?” Her tone was hesitant.

“Then she’d assume I was being defensive because people are judgmental or she’d tell me off for not being proud of you.” Ruby put her menu down and leaned by in her seat. “Gotta love small town mentality.”

Blake raised an eyebrow, setting her menu down as well. “You sound like you actually do love it.”

“It feels normal, I guess,” Ruby admitted, running her fingers along the dark wooded table. She’d sat there before, with her dad, Qrow and Yang. It was years ago, the last time the four of them were all together in a familiar, happy place. “I know these people, the way they think and feel. There’s no need to worry about weird neighbors that don’t want to get to know you, no reason for me to get nervous when I talk to people.”

The Faunus nodded slowly, looking like she understood. “That makes sense, enjoying a place where you don’t feel the need to put your guard up.”

“It’s not too rare,” Ruby admitted, “since I live with most of the people I love and trust completely. But it’s nice to have a whole area like that, instead of just the house.”

They were quiet until Gorm came back to take their orders- two bread bowls of clam chowder, one with a salad side and the other with fries- and deposited their tea and hot chocolate.

From there it turned into menial talk that Blake normally disliked. Blake relayed how Jaune and Pyrrha were doing, Ruby conducted an almost one-sided debate on the pros and cons of additions she wanted to make to Crescent Rose, they pondered how Qrow and Winter hadn’t murdered each other yet, discussed why Ruby had chosen the name Dragonfly (because she wanted a name similar to Yang’s bike and thought dragonflies were much cooler insects).

There food was delivered not by Gorm, but by a curvy woman with silvering blue hair.

“As I live and breathe,” the woman exclaimed, setting down the plates beside the correct patrons without asking, “little Ruby Rose and a girlfriend! I thought I’d never see the day.”

“Good to see you too, Marina,” Ruby deadpanned, removing the bread ‘lid’ to her bowl and dipping it in the chowder.

Marina laughed, reaching out to gently ruffle Ruby’s hair. “I was convinced you were married to your weapon, dear. Now! Introduce me to your lovely companion.” She flashed Blake a warm smile.

To Ruby’s surprise, Blake was smiling back at her, appearing unbothered by her commanding presence or her nearing-loud voice. “Marina, this is my teammate Blake. Blake, this is Marina, the best chef on Patch.” Ruby punctuated her statement by shoving the chowder-soak bread lid into her mouth.

Right on cue, Marina asked about their recent adventures. And, between mouthfuls, Ruby and Blake readily relayed them to her.

~

Ruby gave Dragonfly a pat as she set her helmet down. When she looked back up, Blake was smiling at her, eyes full of uncensored affection. “What?” she asked shyly, running fingers through her hair to see whether it was messy and checking her teeth with her tongue to make sure there was nothing in her teeth.

“It’s nice here,” Blake said, smile becoming a little more playful. “I’m glad that I got to see where you and Yang grew up.” She made her way outside of the garage, Ruby hot on her heels. “And I’m glad that you had so many kind people around you.”

The younger woman fell into stride with her, arms brushing as they walked to the house. “I’m guessing you didn’t get that,” she murmured.

“Yes and no,” Blake replied wistfully. “There were a lot of nice people, people that tried hard to give me a home when they barely had one of their own. But there wasn’t a lot of consistency or comfort. I was always afraid of ending up sleeping in a box or offending the person taking care of me.”

They stepped up onto the front porch, Blake pausing to look out over the sunset.

Ruby stopped with her, looking at Blake in the falling sun. Her eyes looking like they were full of flame, her hair glinted and there was a sweet smile on her lips. It took a few minutes, Blake being as enthralled by the sunset as Ruby was with Blake, but the Faunus caught Ruby’s stare after a moment.

“What?” Blake asked. She had her head tilted slightly and her mouth never lost that bright smile.

“Can I kiss you?” Ruby blurted. She winced, Blake froze and a muttered, “Crap, wasn’t what I meant to say,” came from Ruby.

They stood there awkwardly for a bit, both of them looking at the patio.

“I… I’m going to get ready for bed,” Blake mumbled, pulling the door open and darting into the house.

There was a quiet, “Oh, hey Blake I- and she’s gone.”

Ruby entered the house slowly, holding back tears. There it was- there was her response.

“Ruby, what’s up with Blake?” Taiyang asked. Her quickly followed up with, “Scratch that, what’s up with you, kid?” He gestured for her to come sit with him.

She didn’t hesitate practically collapsing into his side and burying her face into his neck. She stayed there for a while, trembling and sniffling while her father murmured comforting nonsense and stroked her hair and back, occasionally pausing to kiss her on the head.

Once the whimpering stopped and Ruby was certain no tears would fall, she withdrew slightly, so that she was still flush against his side.

“What’s the matter, sweetheart?” Taiyang whispered, blue eyes wide with concern.

Ruby breathed in and out a few times, gathering herself. “I’m in love with Blake,” she announced. “And… she doesn’t feel the same.” She hiccupped and rubbed furiously at her eyes.

“And?”

“And what?” Ruby croaked.

He leaned to the side a little and caught Ruby by the chin, turning her chin to face him. “Kid, I’ve known you for nineteen years, raised you almost by myself. There’s more.” His voice was soft and patient, but unyielding.

“Not just Blake,” she mumbled, more to herself than to him.

“And Weiss?” he asked.

She nodded.

Taiyang swallowed hard, looking like something was hurting him. “…Yang?”

“No,” she snapped. And then added, “Maybe.” Now she was crying. “I don’t know, Dad! I’m scared.” She looked up at him with teary eyes. “I don’t know.”

He drew her into his lap this time, holding her as she did her best to stifle her tears.

“You know, Raven never loved me, right?”

“I didn’t,” she whispered in response.

Taiyang chuckled softly. “I’d hoped not.”

She hiccupped again. “So, why did you guys have Yang?”

“Because Raven was bored, figured she’d see if this relationship stuff was worth the energy and I think she’d gotten tired of me making love-struck faces at her.” He sighed. “In the end, it wasn’t worth it for her, but it was for me. I still love her, don’t get me wrong, just not as much as I hate her for abandoning Yang.”

Ruby sniffled, wiped her eyes again and asked, “Why are you telling me this?”

“I don’t regret what happened with Raven- you and Yang mean everything to me and neither of you would have happened if I hadn’t pursued her. But, in the end, Summer was always there. She never pushed, just let me know and did her best to move on when I was stuck on Raven. And, when I realized I loved her back, she was there for me, warm and comforting.”

“And?”

He sighed. “Point is, sometimes people just don’t love you back, but there’s always someone out there that will. If Blake doesn’t feel the same, don’t push her. You’re strong, you have people who love you and there’s still Weiss. And- and Yang. If that doesn’t work out, I _know_ that someone in this world will love you. Multiple, even, if that’s how you are.”

“How I am?” Ruby asked. Her chest still ached and she was blinking constantly, but she just had to ask.

“Polyamorous,” he replied easily. “It means you can fall in love with multiple people.”

She repeated the word a few times. The focus on it cleared her head a little. “Is it normal?”

“Normal? Yeah, I think so,” Taiyang said. “Common? Not quite. Of course, I’m here for you either way.”

Everything still hurt, but at least there was that.

“Thanks, Dad.” Ruby whispered, laying her head back against his shoulder. “You’re the best.”

“I try,” he said softly. “Every gods-damned day. You and Yang only deserve the best.”

“Well, I think you’re doing pretty good.”

~

Normally, after crying Ruby would just crawl into bed. Tonight, she took the time to gather some pillows from her closet and grab some spare blankets, making herself a make-shift nest that she would probably be staying in whenever Blake was out and about.

It was a nice nest, reminiscent of the ones she and Yang would make during thunderstorms, with more pillows than she could use and enough blankets to drown herself in- nice and cozy. All she was lacking was someone to cuddle with and hot chocolate. So, she did the natural thing and went downstairs to make some.

It felt like she was alone in the house. Dad was asleep, Blake was in Yang’s room and the only sound she could hear was her feet padding along the floor and the sounds of the microwave heating her milk in a massive mug. The heating would take a bit, with so much milk, but it gave her time to breathe deeply and pace out some excess energy, arms swinging at her side as she did.

She mixed in the powder with practiced ease- from a package that hadn’t previously been opened. Ruby was willing to bet that her dad got it before they arrived, assuming that she would want some while she was visiting. He was, in fact, the best, no matter his doubts.

By the time she was back up the stairs, not a drop spilled, Blake was pacing outside her door, looking so wrapped up in her own thoughts that she’d missed Ruby coming up the stairs entirely.

“Blake,” Ruby said softly.

The Faunus jumped, one hand going to her heart. “Gods!”

“Just Ruby,” she joked weakly. Her chest still ached dully.

Blake ducked her head. “I- Ruby- I,” she fumbled. “I love you.”

“But not like that?” Ruby breathed, eyes on her mug.

“Very much like that,” Blake corrected.

They locked gazes, each one searching for a reaction. Ruby saw sincerity. Blake saw pain.

Ruby was trembling. “Then why did you run from me?” she whispered, clutching her mug so that it burned her hands and gave her a point of focus.

“Because it’s not just you,” Blake admitted, looking ashamed. “It’s Weiss and Yang. I love them too. _Your partner and your sister_ ,” she added, sounding strained. “And it’s not fair to you! When I didn’t know how you felt, that there was a possibility that my feelings wouldn’t hurt you, I wasn’t as scared but now…” Her voice cracked a bit. “I’m sorry, Ruby.”

“Don’t be,” Ruby told her. The words rushed out; she was afraid that Blake would run again. “I love Weiss. I don’t know how I feel about Yang. I’m scared too.”

Slowly, Blake closed the distance, reaching out to touch Ruby’s face. “Then… we can be scared together.”

Ruby smiled slowly, for the first time since they entered the house. “I like the sound of that.” She pressed her cheek into Blake’s hand and an uncertain thumb stroked Ruby’s cheekbone.

“Me too.”

~

In the morning, Taiyang would find Yang’s room empty. Upon peeking into Ruby’s room, he found the two of them curled up in a pile of blankets, an untouched mug of formerly hot chocolate on Ruby’s nightstand.

He prayed that everything would work out, in one way or another.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In a month I'm going back to school and I'm going to start volunteering to help out a no-kill animal shelter- I could work with animals until the day I die. But, the point is, I'm not going to have as much time for writing and I'm already sporadic as is, so I'll do my best to get another three or four chapters out before I go back.
> 
> Thanks for reading and wish me luck!


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did I mention that Yang is going the be impossible? Cause she is.
> 
> Also, about those extra chapters I was hoping to get out... Probably not coming as fast as I'd hoped, but here's a slightly longer than usual chapter to make up for it!

Weiss’s mind seemed to be stuck on anything but her work. Mining reports were hardly riveting reads, but it was her job- it would all be her job one day. She picked up her favorite pen, a fountain style pen that wrote in indigo ink, giving her slowly deteriorating handwriting a type of flawed grace. Fishing an old piece of junk paper out of the pile, she let her fingers work, looping and turning and cutting off abruptly in her own form of meditation.

What came of her scribbling would hardly be called art, but it was pleasing to her eyes and wandering mind. She half paid attention as the figures came into form, the other half diverted to the report. It was a nice balance of work and an odd type of relaxation. By the time she finished the report and the approval, she looked back at her ‘art’ in earnest, chuckling occasionally as her drawing had sometimes turned into words- corrections in the spelling, little commas and semi-colons and some names- mostly that of her teammates.

_And_ she was back to being distracted.

Weiss capped and set aside the pen neatly, before stalking out of her little office, yanking the door shut a little too hard. She strode briskly down the stairs, eager for a cup of coffee and the opportunity to criticize Yang’s gaming tactics.

The picture Yang had shown her, courtesy of Taiyang, had been lingering in the back of her mind all morning.

In the midst of a nest (as Yang had called it, sounding oddly nostalgic) of pillows and blankets lay Blake and Ruby. Ruby hadn’t bothered with a pillow, her head pressed against Blake’s upper arm, but had been up to her shoulders in blankets, one hand reaching out from her cocoon to twine her fingers with the hand beside her head. In Weiss’s mind, it would seem like an awkward position, but the pair of them looked perfectly content, Blake’s free arm curled tightly around Ruby.

The image had simultaneously warmed her heart and tightened knots in her stomach. It made her miss her relationship with Olive, despite the… unfavorable circumstances in which it had ended. She missed the companionship, the easy flirting back and forth and yeah, she missed the sex.

Weiss shook her head firmly. She was happy for Blake and Ruby and none of her bitterness was allowed to get in the way of that. When she told Olive that her team came first, she meant it, even if it didn’t erase the pretty picture in her mind of a wife, kids and maybe a dog to come home to one day. With an internal reminder that she was only twenty-one and still had years of life left to get to a point like that, she hopped down from the final step and into the living room.

It was much the same as when she left it earlier: Yang was on the couch, glaring down the television as she mashed buttons on her controller like a madwoman. Luckily, she’d taken the time to put away the bowl of yogurt- according to Yang, a cup wasn’t enough and thus she poured six of them into a bowl Weiss typically used for mixing marinades or eggs for omelets.

She took a seat on the couch, neatly resting one knee over the other as she watched Yang’s character slash at an ugly looking beast that kept regenerating health.

“They’re weak to fire,” Weiss said idly, uncertain whether Yang would actually hear her.

Yang heard her, pausing in her frantic slicing and dodging to give Weiss a bemused look. There was a loud roar followed by a grunt and the television quickly switching over to a loading screen, likely going back to Yang’s last autosave. “Damnit,” she muttered. Yang turned fully, leaning her side against the couch to face Weiss. “How would you know?”

“Because I’ve played?” Weiss offered.

“I thought you didn’t play video games- not the violent, mindless kind, anyway.”

Weiss clicked her tongue. “Role play games are never mindless, especially not when you take the time to read the lore, get a feel for the setting and establish a character.” She paused. “And using a PC helps; certain modifications can give the game a much richer, challenging feel that requires you to strategize, utilize all of your abilities and plan ahead.” More reservedly, she admitted, “And the violence is cathartic since I don’t have to worry about my life actually being in danger when fighting.”

“I didn’t know you were into roleplay,” Yang teased, eyebrows wiggling.

Her suggestive comment was ignored, Weiss snatching the controller from her hands and fiddling with it. She opened and closed some menus, switched some weapons and equipped a spell, looked over the character’s stats- which were none too impressive by her standards- and continued from where Yang left off in the dungeon.

She much preferred a spell-sword or stealth archer aided by poisons and illusion magic, but she could work with a barbarian playstyle. The light armor allowed her to sneak and she fired off some magic bolts, eliminating weaker targets before attracting the attention of the boss.

Weiss could practically feel Yang’s confusion as she burned through the character’s magic bar, switched to a two-handed weapon and slashed it to bits; this time, the death grunt was from the troll. She handed the controller back to Yang with a flourish. “Consider that me making up for distracting you.”

“Thank you?” Yang said slowly, taking the object back gingerly. She continuously glanced at Weiss out of the corner of her eye as she went through looting the room.

Getting tired of the looks, Weiss gave a brisk order. “Scoot forward.”

Yang inched away from the back of the couch, sitting toward the middle of the cushion. She blinked owlishly as Weiss waved her hand, urging her further forward. The process continued until Yang sat on the edge of the couch, practically leaning on it.

The heiress broke one of her own rules, perching on the back of the couch as she gathered Yang’s hair in her hands.

Yang turned quickly, though Weiss didn’t seem too keen on letting it go. “What’re you doing?” she asked warily.

Weiss rolled her eyes. “Relax, I’m just braiding your hair.”

Slowly, Yang returned to facing the TV, though she did her best to watch Weiss’s reflection in the screen.

It didn’t bother Weiss- this was relaxing work. Blake didn’t like her hair played with and Ruby’s hair was too short for what Weiss had in mind. She started by simply combing through the golden locks with her fingers, working out any light tangles that may have formed.

For all of Yang’s teasing about Blake’s purring, she made similarly content noises as Weiss ran her fingers through her hair, nails scratching lightly over her scalp. She’d have to do this again later and give Blake a counter for Yang’s playful prodding.

“That’s nice,” Yang sighed, form going loose as she went back to dungeon crawling.

“Winter always did it for me when I was younger,” Weiss murmured, beginning to separate parts. “She taught me how to do the same for her. It’s been years since I’ve been able to practice.”

Even so, the actions were half muscle memory and half making sure that she was dividing up Yang’s hair properly. Winter had nice hair, but it was nowhere near as thick and was pin straight without having been curled or braided beforehand. The difference was something she had to work around, but nothing too complicated. Plus, in her opinion, Yang’s hair was nicer to work with.

“If it’s always this nice, you can braid my hair whenever,” Yang replied. She sounded relaxed even she set an opponent ablaze and switched weapons to drive a greatsword through its head. It seemed like she was beginning to appreciate Weiss’s use of magic.

They chatted back and forth quietly, Weiss slowly bringing a slightly lopsided French braid into being as Yang finished her character’s exploration and picked up a small reward.

Weiss surveyed her handiwork while Yang picked up some new spells and equipment. “Not quite perfect, but I think I can get it right.” She let the end of the braid go and slowly undid her work, combing through Yang’s hair once again.

“How many tries did it usually take with Winter?” Yang asked mildly.

“Initially? A lot. After some practice? I could have it done perfectly in five minutes. Ten if I was doing something more complex.” She quickly switched tone and put in, “Start having your character make her own armor- you get better and cheaper equipment that way.”

~

Two hours of practice and Weiss ordering Yang through some new tips and techniques later, they decided to take a break. “How do you feel about lunch,” Yang asked, powering down the television and console. She put her controller away in ‘its proper place’ rather than leave it out as she normally would when Weiss wasn’t around to remind her.

“I don’t fee like cooking, if that’s what you’re asking,” Weiss offered.

“Going out it is,” Yang decided, strolling over to the front door and pawing through the numerous items that had piled up on the coat rack. “I’m thinking Northern Vacuo food, from that place in on Rumen street.”

“That’s… a bit spicy for my tastes.”

Yang snorted. “I’m surprised spaghetti isn’t too spicy for you. Is all the food that comes out of Atlas tough and bland?” She was getting ready to go anyway, slipping into the brown leather jacket the team had picked out- and Weiss had payed for- for her last birthday.

Weiss sighed, reaching for her own jacket anyway. “I wish I could say it was only the food.”

“Speaking of which, how’s your dad?” And now she was getting her motorcycle keys.

The heiress snatched them from her hand, shoving them in the purse she kept hanging on the rack- one of the few things that no one dared cover on purpose or on accident- and immediately slinging said purse over her shoulder. Yang wouldn’t dare reach for it while she was holding it… again. “We’re taking my car. And he’s the same as he always is.” She gave Yang a pointed look.

One that Yang ignored. “I’ve only met him once and you don’t like talking about him, so… how is he always? And we’re going to that restaurant, right?”

“We’ll go,” Weiss agreed, pulling the door open and making a ‘ladies first’ gesture.

Yang gave an exaggerated curtsy, as though she was wearing a ballgown rather than worn jeans, and stepped outside, smirking slightly as Weiss followed and locked the door behind them. “You still haven’t answered the question, Ice Queen.”

“I told you we were going,” Weiss replied archly, tossing her own smirk over her shoulder as she stalked toward her car.

“You’re the worst,” Yang informed her.

They were quiet through getting into the car and Weiss glancing over to make sure that Yang had put on her seatbelt. Yang had protested that she wasn’t a child, but her only response had been a murmured, “I didn’t imply otherwise- what _are_ you talking about?”

Once they were out of the driveway, Yang tried again. “Hey, I know he was pretty hard on you and Winter, but is he really that bad?”

“No?” Weiss said- asked.

“That sounded certain,” Yang deadpanned. She rested her temple against the window, watching the world go by around her. If she focused her eyes, she could get an actual image, but she enjoyed the blurred vision, the ability to relax her attention and let things pass her by.

Weiss eyed her as best she could while looking at the road, her long fingernails drumming lightly on the steering wheel. “You know my father and I have a… difficult relationship. What brought all this on? You’ve never asked for specifics before.”

It was Yang’s turn to hesitate. “Well, Ruby told me some things earlier. Things that dad told her.” She paused. “Raven didn’t love my dad and, uh, I don’t think that she loves me either.” Yang leaned back slightly, tapping the back of her head against the headrest on the seat. There were a million different ways she could say what she had in mind, but none of them sounded anything but insulting even in her head.

“If you’re asking for help in dealing with an apathetic and potentially sociopathic parent, I have nothing for you,” Weiss told her brusquely. “Trust me, if I ever develop a decent coping mechanism for it, you’ll be the first person I tell.”

“Wait, do you really think they’re sociopaths?”

The heiress shrugged, glancing over at Yang as they came to a stoplight. “Perhaps that was hyperbolic. I think my father is more of a narcissist- controlling, entitled, manipulative and so on. I’m not familiar enough with Raven and even if I was, I’m hardly qualified to diagnose either of them, rendering any observations moot.”

Yang rolled her eyes, tugging on the end of her braid, the final product of Weiss’s little exercise. “Can you just give me a yes or no next time?”

“Yes.”

“You’re the worst,” Yang reiterated. “Has anyone ever told you that?”

Weiss clucked her tongue thoughtfully. “In so many words? No one besides yourself. In other words? More people than you would believe.”

Yang narrowed her eyes even as Weiss pulled into a parking spot- when had they gotten out of the suburbs and into the city? “Is this going to be one of those things where I have to fight someone?”

“Why is fighting people the go-to with you and Ruby?” Weiss asked as she climbed out of the car.

“We suck at words, so we show affection in other ways,” Yang replied nonchalantly as she followed Weiss’s lead, tossing one arm over her shoulder as they entered the restaurant.

A tired, but polite looking college aged man took them to a booth just a bit down from the bar where some sort of game was playing and gathering very minor interest from the patrons. He left them with their menus and the promise that their server would be with them shortly.

Weiss settled into the booth, giving the restaurant a cursory glance.

The decor was simple and gave no hint that the food was considered foreign, looking like any bar and grill, really. Easy listening music played quietly, pictures of local attractions and landmarks hung on the walls which were made of dark wood and the low murmur of patrons was relaxing. Deciding that it was a decent place, she picked up the menu.

“How mild is mild?” she muttered as she started flipping through. “Mild to you isn’t mild to me.”

“Eh, you should be safe,” Yang reassured her. “Their medium heat doesn’t have enough kick for me, but the food in general is too good for me to complain.”

Weiss didn’t feel any more informed, but she continued looking through the menu, pausing at one point to trace a little design separating the entrees and meals. Her mind went back to earlier. “So, you were right.”

Yang, her menu already set aside, furrowed her brows. “About what?”

“Blake and Ruby,” Weiss elaborated, squinting at some of the words before her. There should really be descriptions next to these things, she thought. “What else?”

The blonde smirked, leaning back in the booth, fingers locked behind her head. “I know my partner and I know my sister, Ice Queen, don’t sound so surprised.”

Weiss picked a dish at random and set the menu on top of Yang’s, folding her hands neatly on the table. She shrugged slightly. “I suppose you would know,” she agreed, “though I always thought it would be you and Blake, not Ruby.”

“Me and- what? Psh, no,” Yang drawled. “Why would you even-? Ha, that’s just-” She gestured wildly, like that would take some of the attention off of her increasingly warm face. “Weiss, just no.”

Someone cleared their throat, saving Yang from further denial. “Is now a bad time?” A small, heavily tattooed Faunus woman had collected their menus and was watching them both warily. Her tail, that of a silver fox, was swishing nervously behind her and her teeth worried her lower lip just above a metal stud.

Weiss recovered first, flashing her a disarming smile that could soothe agitated share holders. “Now is the perfect time, thank you,” she read the woman’s tag, “Crystal. I’ll have the number twenty-one with chicken and a glass of iced tea.”

Crystal paused for a second, as if struck by Weiss, but scrambled to put down the order once she refocused. “Ah, mild, medium or hot?”

“Mild, please,” Weiss replied, catching her eyes once more.

A smile started to pull at the corner of the woman’s mouth. “Yes, ma’am,” she said easily.

Yang coughed. “I’ll have the forty-five with pork, hot and a bottle of beer- whatever you have.”

Crystal wrote that down as well and nodded to them- Weiss. “I’ll be back with your drinks shortly.” And sauntered off, tail wagging slightly.

“Were you… flirting?”

Weiss followed Crystal to the kitchen with her eyes. “She _is_ pretty cute.”

“You just got out of a relationship,” Yang reminded her, playing with the end of her braid.

The heiress raised her eyebrows. “One, it was nearly a month ago now and two, flirting can just be that, Yang. You would know,” she said pointedly. “And, if I were to pursue her, it would be none of your business.”

“Of course it would be my business,” Yang said lightly. “You’re one of my best friends and thus my business.” More gently she added, “I’m just trying to look out for you, Weiss. Someone needs to.”

“I’ve already got an older sister,” she said, rolling her eyes. At least she seemed placated though.

Their menial chatter returned and the day went on. Crystal brought their drinks and Weiss caught her eye again and when Crystal brought their food and Yang intercepted her to… mess with Weiss.

“So, Crystal,” Yang drawled before Weiss could do the smile and eyelash flutter thing.

The Faunus twitched, eyes suddenly running over the food. “Did I mess up the order?”

“No, not at all,” Yang told her. “I like your tattoos, though. Where’d you get ‘em done?”

Crystal relaxed into a smile, looking looser than she had since she first took their menus. “Mistral, actually,” she replied, an unfamiliar accent slipping through and her fingers trailing along the brightly colored sleeves absently. “My band and I toured the more populated areas a few years back and our manager hooked me up with a professional in the capitol. She did some awesome work for all of us.”

“You were in a band?” Weiss inquired, cutting in neatly.

The Faunus blushed faintly. “Yeah, a little group called Hanlon’s Razor.”

“Was Hanlon your lead singer?” Yang asked.

Crystal laughed, a high, sunny sound. “No, it’s an aphorism- a saying: Never attribute to malice which can adequately be explained by stupidity. I thought it fit my friends and me perfectly.”

The huntresses both chuckled at that.

“It has a ring to it,” Yang agreed.

The waitress gave them a bright smile. “That it did!” She paused, glanced around and shook her head. “I have a job to do, but let me know if you need anything, alright?”

They answered in the affirmative, Yang joining Weiss in appreciating the view. She isn’t Weiss or Blake, Yang thought, but she’s pretty cute.

Once she had disappeared into the kitchen once more, Weiss narrowed her eyes at Yang. “What was that?”

“She’s cute, seems to be funny and was in a band- what’s not to like?” Yang asked innocently, giving her best confused expression.

“You…” Weiss pointed a pristine nail at her, “are a piece of work, Yang Xiao Long.”

Yang leaned forward, pressing her elbows onto the table. “I have _no idea_ what you’re talking about.”

~

Hours later, Yang sprawled across her and Ruby’s combined beds, head hanging off the edge as she contemplated the slip of paper between her fingers. The handwriting was loopy and slanted to the left, signed with a C and a heart. It had a number for a scroll and words that said, ‘Hope to hear from both of you!’

She felt bad, hiding this from Weiss, but the little note had sent her into a panic. It had been all too easy for her brain dating someone- someone _else_ \- with Weiss, but she had recoiled immediately at the thought. Weiss deserved better than that, so did Blake and certainly Ruby did! No, she thought crumbling the scrap paper in her hand, Weiss deserved someone who loved her with her whole heart, not someone like Yang or Crystal, who would love another as well.

Yang tossed the wadded paper into a waste bin (installed by Weiss a while back, when Ruby was hurt) and turned to her scroll. She… was going to need to talk to someone about this.

Her teammates were automatically off the list and so was her dad and Qrow- neither of them needed to deal with that kind of thing from her. She contemplated asking some friends from school, but Nora and Jaune would be no good at it, she wasn’t too close to Ren and Pyrrha was closer to Blake and Ruby than she was to Yang, putting her out of the question as well.

She looked through the contact information of her other friends and wondered when was the last time she spoke to them. They were close throughout their time at Signal and had spent time together at Beacon, but for the life of her, it was as if none of them meant anything to her anymore. More options down the drain.

That left one person and Yang wasn’t too eager to contact them over this. Their friendship had been a little rough since that last incident, but…

‘Hey, I’m sorry about a few weeks ago and I understand if you don’t want to talk to me, but I have a problem.’ She deleted and retyped the words a dozen times, hovered over the send button and then hit it anyway, a feeling of dread curling in her stomach.

There was a response less than a minute later.

‘I’m gonna hazard a guess and assume you have more than one,’ Sable replied, somehow managing to convey a deadpan tone through the message.

‘You could say that. Help?’

‘Of course!’ they responded. ‘I’m kinda busy this week, but we can meet for breakfast on Saturday.’

Yang sighed in relief. It wasn’t ideal, but it was better than them just brushing her off. ‘Sounds good. See you then.’ She sent the message and then quickly typed up another. ‘Thanks, Sable.’

‘What are friends for? Hang in there.’

“I’m trying,” she said softly, eyes drifting to Crystal’s note. “I’m trying.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not sure how I feel about this chapter. It was sort of dragged out of my brain kicking and screaming.
> 
> As always, thanks for reading and commenting- comments give me life. And kudos- how the hell is this fluff piece almost at two hundred kudos? You people are the best.


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, I feel the need to talk about something silly that happened today, this time as my brother (mentioned in the A/N in chapter 7) and I were making lunch.
> 
> Me, talking about him slicing cheese: "Please be careful."  
> Jasper: "Don't worry, I'm perfectly prepared for if I kill myself." Pause. *looks confused* "I mean cut myself."  
> Me: *dying*

Yang’s playful ribbing had stopped just before noon and Weiss hadn’t sent word her way since her initial, ‘Happy for you.’ The minimal response was putting Ruby on edge. Admittedly, she wasn’t sure what she had expected when she gave her dad the go-ahead to send the picture, but it wasn’t radio silence. She could feel Blake’s eyes on her as she paced back and forth across the porch, worn and sun-bleached wood creaking as she moved.

“They’re probably just busy,” Blake assured her softly, leaning back on the porch swing with enough force to make it rock. She patted the seat, just as beaten up as the wood beneath their feet, beckoning Ruby over.

Ruby made a few more rounds to get her anxieties out, counting out each step and wondering in the back of her mind how many steps had she spent doing this- not just today, but throughout her life. Maybe thousands, she thought as she finally came to a stop, settling beside Blake. Without much consideration, her head fell on Blake’s shoulder. In a way, it was as if nothing had changed.

Blake nudged her slightly, so that she could slip an arm over her shoulder. Again, Ruby noted how normal it felt. “Are you worried about-” Blake started, only to pause, eyebrows scrunching up in thought. There were a lot of things to worry about, big and small, where this was concerned.

“Yes and no,” Ruby murmured, understanding entirely. She’d been seeking the words all morning to summarize the issues that lie ahead, but hadn’t quite found them. “I mean, it would be awesome if everything worked out.” Blake hummed an agreement. “But,” she continued, “this is weird. Really, really weird,” she added in a grumble, mostly to herself, before continuing. “I’m trying not to get my hopes up.”

Her companion sighed. “When we were younger I never thought I would miss your optimism.”

Ruby crammed herself further into Blake’s side, all but burrowing. “Me neither.” Fingers trailed gently up and down her side and she sighed in contentment. Goosebumps raised along the path of Blake’s fingertips and Ruby’s heartrate jumped a bit before returning to normal. This kind of touch, light and not entirely platonic in intention, was a little more foreign than the cuddling, but that didn’t mean she hesitated when it was offered.

The two of them had hardly let go of each other since that night- well, more like Ruby had hardly let go of Blake, not that the Faunus complained. Blake had been ready to return to Yang’s room after quiet ‘I love you’s, but Ruby had caught her by the hand. “Stay with me,” she had begged. “I want to wake up with you.” Maybe it had been an indulgence of her anxieties, but after Blake took off beforehand and her dad told her about Raven, she _needed_ to have Blake there when she woke up. Even if only this once.

And Blake was there when she woke up, sitting at the foot of the bed, wide awake and sipping on a glass of water that Taiyang had brought her. Only after letting Ruby know she was still there did she go to the bathroom to prepare for the day. As bad as Ruby felt for doubting her, even subconsciously, she was thrilled.

She was pulled from her thoughts as Blake shifted slightly. “What’s the matter?”

“Just… thinking,” Blake replied.

“About?”

There was a pause as Blake turned the thoughts over in her head. Ruby didn’t mind- Blake liked having her words in order, even if it could make things difficult when she needed longer to think.

“Our third year,” the Faunus said after a few minutes, “when this all started because I fell for Weiss.”

Ruby’s head shot up, clipping Blake in the jaw. “That long ago?!” The words didn’t stop, despite Ruby’s hand jumping to the top of her head and Blake hissing as she grabbed at her jaw. “Sorry!”

“Your head is harder than Yang’s,” Blake deadpanned, rubbing the accosted area.

“Funny, Dad says that too,” Ruby offered sheepishly, mimicking Blake’s actions. “What were you saying?”

Blake shook her head and smiled wryly, leaning back and occasionally running her fingers over what would become a bruise for people whose aura hadn’t been so well trained. “Yes, that long ago,” she said at last. “When we were all getting worked up over that final in Port’s class.”

“Still haven’t made up all the sleep I lost…” the younger woman muttered petulantly at the memory.

“None of us have,” Blake told her without a hint of humor.

Ruby snorted. “How did you have time to think about Weiss?”

The Faunus chuckled. “Weiss _made_ time- when she dragged all of us out on different days, remember?”

Her memory of the actual events was hazy, but she did recall Weiss ordering each of them to take a day away from cramming- and then making them do it. “Kinda?” Ruby replied.

“Well, she took me to a shop that specialized in tea, picked out a few different kinds that we would both like and then we had something of a tea party, out under a tree on campus. She baked cookies and made finger sandwiches and we tried a little bit of everything.” Her eyes fell shut, as if the image was fresh in her mind and forming on the back of her eyelids. “Weiss didn’t speak and she didn’t ask me to. She let me talk, if and when I wanted to and she listened. She listened,” Blake repeated quietly, the words laced with affection.

“It was that day?”

“No, I don’t think I could give it an actual day. It sort of snuck up on me,” Blake replied. “But that was the first time I started taking a second look, started thinking about how much she’d changed and for the better. I liked Weiss before, but I never stopped to consider that the person she grew into was someone I could love.”

Ruby tilted her head. “You know, I thought it would be you and Yang.”

“She was next-” Blake stopped short, reconsidering that for a beat. “Well, I guess you both were.”

“Huh?”

Blake smirked slightly. “Since Weiss always had someone trailing after her, I figured that it would blow over. I kept waiting for it. So, when I moved in with you and Yang, I guess I jumped immediately to you two. I ignored it for a while-”

“Because you thought it wasn’t fair?” Ruby asked, thinking back to the night before. Her stomach knotted in memory of how pained and guilty Blake had sounded, like it had been eating her up.

“That, and I couldn’t possibly choose.” Her mouth pulled down at one corner. “I considered trying to reconnect with Sun, but he already had a girlfriend. I’m glad it worked out that way, though- he’s too good a friend to use like that.”

Blake shook her head again and sighed heavily. “Please… never tell Pyrrha about this. I give her so much trouble about Jaune and there I was, dealing with the same thing she was. I liked to think it was because of how different Weiss and I were, how much bad blood there is between her family and the Faunus, that it would just never work in reality. In the end, I was just scared.” She gave Ruby a sardonic smile. “Not that I admitted it until I fell in love with you and Yang.”

Ruby returned the smile, though it was far brighter. “I won’t tell her, promise. But I think that you should.”

One eyebrow went up.

“Just- think about it. Pyrrha is one of your closest friends and she’s dealing with the same thing. I think it would make her feel better, maybe give her the courage.”

“I wouldn’t say it’s the same,” Blake countered.

“It definitely isn’t the same, but it’s similar,” Ruby conceded. “And your- our- situation is a lot more complicated. Pyrrha doesn’t have to deal with loving three people, two of which are related.”

“When did this get so out of hand?” Blake groaned, hand moving from her jaw to cover her eyes.

It was Ruby’s turn to shake her head. “The moment I sneezed and blew a hole in the courtyard, probably.”

They contemplated that for a while, Ruby moving her legs to put the swing in motion and Blake tilting her head back to look up at the overhang, hand falling down to her side. For all the years it had been, that day still hung in the back of Ruby’s mind. She couldn’t read Blake’s mind and didn’t know if it was the same for her, but she would be surprised if Blake didn’t think on it occasionally.

~

Weiss was glad that Yang had retreated to her room, especially with how jumpy she’d been on the drive back. Even on the way out, she was acting weird, practically pulling her to the door. Which was a shame, as she never got the chance to get Crystal’s number, if only as a friend- she wasn’t too sure she was prepared to put herself back out there quite yet. But the Faunus had seemed like she had a lot of stories to tell between her accent and her ink. However, it was a minor subject at the moment, one that would likely be forgotten by the time she was done with... this.

She drummed her fingers on her desk. She had initially intended on doubling down on a harassment report made against a Faunus miner by a human foreman. While she did mean to return to doing so, the investigation would still be around in a few moments. The heiress slumped back in her chair, the padded leather a comforting pressure across her shoulder blades and along her neck. No wonder her father had such particular tastes in office chairs- even more so than his décor or meals.

Her eyes darted between the message on her scroll and the report. For once, work seemed more appealing but… With a deep exhale, Weiss picked up her scroll to stare at the message once more, as though that would help determine the sender’s motivation.

‘SOS. Need favor. Call me please!’

It couldn’t be that important, Weiss reasoned. If it had, she would have gotten a call. And yet she couldn’t shake the feeling that she had to answer, even if only to say that she could not help. Yes, she could do that. She was a decent person who could give a polite refusal, no matter the unpleasant association.

Steeling herself once more, Weiss dialed the number.

She was answered on the second ring, but the face Weiss was expecting wasn’t present. Instead of soft green eyes, warm brown skin and a lopsided smile, she got a fuzzy black muzzle and dark brown eyes surrounded by tan fur. Two floppy ears twitched as she gave the perfunctory, “Schnee” that she had grown so used to.

The delighted, high-pitched sound Weiss made immediately after caused the little creature’s head to tilt almost ninety degrees in inquiry, ears flapping and wet black nose pressing against the screen curiously. Hot breath fogged the camera slightly and a pink tongue poked out. She made a few more cooing noises in response until the scroll was removed from the puppy’s face, at last showing her ex through a veil of saliva and fog, quickly wiped off on what she assumed was a sleeve or pants leg.

Olive looked frazzled, her hair in a sloppy bun and her flannel shirt- one that Weiss distinctly remembered wandering around Olive’s apartment in- hanging loosely off of one shoulder and halfway down her arm, bearing what appeared to be a nicotine patch. Despite everything, a voice in the back of her mind muttered a ‘finally’ at the thought of Olive giving up smoking. It only took us breaking up for her to listen, she thought darkly.

“Uh, hi, Weiss,” she said softly, eyes routinely glancing away from the heiress. Olive shifted where she sat- her dinning room it seemed- and suddenly reached back to remove the elastic holding her hair and messed with it a bit. She was always self-conscious like that.

“Olive.” Weiss put as much chill as could into her reply- she had already made herself look weak with her response to the cuteness and she was not giving any more ground.

The socialite rubbed the back of her neck, eyes returning downward. “That was Ajax you just met. I, ah, just got him.”

“So, you moved out of your apartment?” Weiss guessed reticently. If Olive asked her to help move or for a place to stay, she would hang up. If there was one lesson she had learned from her time as an independent adult, it was that moving was the worst.

Olive wilted slightly. “No, that’s the problem.” She shifted to the right, grabbing Ajax around the middle and holding him in front of the scroll again. For a puppy of _maybe_ three months, he was relatively relaxed about the whole ordeal.

He was a big pup, not a normal mutt or even an average dog. This was a breed that Weiss had grown up with, one that her father’s bodyguards used to keep them all safe. “A Caucasian shepherd,” Weiss murmured fondly, remembering all those years she resisted the urge to reach out and pet the massive animals. This one had likely been born nearly twice Zwei’s size and would just as likely break two hundred pounds when he was full grown. A dog that size had no place in an apartment.

After a second’s analysis, she caught something. “Is he… missing a paw?”

“Yeah,” Olive confirmed. “Up to about the elbow, the vet said. The breeder wanted to put him in a pound- no one would pay two grand for him and no one wants a special needs animal. So, I paid full price for him and here he is. In an apartment I can’t get rid of.” Her cheeks colored slightly. “I know we’re not exactly on speaking terms but… could you hold on to him? Only for a week or two,” she tacked on quickly. “I’ve asked everyone and they just don’t have the time or space or some stupid shit and my landlord wants him gone and I can’t find a hotel that’ll take a puppy-”

“I’ll take him,” Weiss cut in. As mad as she was, Olive was on the verge of tears and the last thing Weiss wanted was for something to happen to Ajax- she was weak for the little head tilt and fluffy face. Gods, Blake was going to kill her… unless she got Ruby on her side right off the bat.

While Olive rambled through her ‘thank you’s and promises and compensation and offers to pay for all of the food and their time, Weiss plotted.

~

“Hey,” Ruby murmured.

Blake glanced over at her. “Yeah?”

“Could we- I know that this has been on your mind a long time but… could we focus on us? Before we start dealing with Weiss and Yang? I know you love them and I know I love Weiss,” her words had begun to string together in an attempt to get them out, “but I want to be happy with us first, you know? Just so that we-”

“Ruby!”

She stopped. “Blake?”

The Faunus had turned to face her fully and one hand rested on Ruby’s knee. “I understand. And I agree. Before we do any pursuing, I want to enjoy this.” She tightened her grip. “And I want us to be solid- to know that we’re okay before trying to build a new relationship.”

“Add onto, more like.”

Blake considered that. “I guess so.” She dipped her head down a bit.

Their gazes held for a moment. Ruby’s eyes trailed over her features, taking in her earnest expression and twitching ears and her slightly upturned lips. Her focus lingered there. “Can… can I kiss you _now_?” she whispered.

Blake grinned. “I’d like that.” And she leaned closer, stopping just short to let Ruby close the distance.

There was a second, if that, in which Ruby’s mind raced, considering her chapped lips and how her breath smelled from the eggs she’d eaten earlier and the way her hands had begun to sweat. She killed those thoughts quickly. This was Blake. Blake loved her. Everything was okay.

She leaned forward.

It was nothing big, not like Ruby had seen on TV or even the PDA she’d seen in person. This was short and sweet, just a press of the lips. It wasn’t fireworks or sparks or even the heady excitement that had overcome her while they rode on Dragonfly. No, Ruby felt nothing but warmth and contentment.

She gave a happy little sigh as Blake withdrew just enough to press their foreheads together instead.

Blake was still smiling, a little giggle sneaking out- likely due to the look on Ruby’s face. She had a feeling that it looked pretty silly, but she couldn’t bring herself to care.

“We should do that often,” Ruby told her. “I mean, not like in a gross public way, but you know. Often.”

“I am inclined to agree with you,” Blake agreed languidly. She leaned back in.

There was a cacophonous creak. “Hey girls, you hungry-” Taiyang stopped short as Ruby peeked over Blake’s shoulder, face bright red.

He immediately turned away and said over one shoulder, “Uh, there’s stuff for sandwiches in the fridge.” The door seemed to creak even louder as it shut behind him.

Ruby pressed her face into Blake’s shoulder, under her hair, as if it would hide her from the world.

“Maybe we should go out for lunch,” Blake suggested haltingly.

“Good idea.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I didn't get this out earlier- shit is getting out of hand at my house and I'm sorry to say that it may continue to be three or four weeks between updates. Also sorry for that kiss. It just felt so awkward to write and even more so to read, but I needed it to be there, you know? I felt you all deserved some sort of pay off beyond cuddling.
> 
> Love you guys! Thanks for... just reading this, let alone giving all of the kudos (fucking 222!) and kind comments. It drives me to write better and more often, even when my muses are being shitheads.


	19. Chapter 19

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This wasn't a very fun chapter, but some shit had to be discussed. The next one will have a little more lightness to it, promise.
> 
> See dramatic statement below.

Weiss could see the way Yang was gritting her teeth as Olive pulled her car up alongside the curb in front of their lawn. Violet eyes held hers, looking once more like they were questioning her sanity. Their gazes locked in a silent battle, one demanding that Olive leave, the other letting her know that wasn’t happening today.

This time, Yang caved. “I’ll take Bumblebee,” she said briskly, stalking into the garage without a glance in Olive’s direction or an acknowledgment of Ajax. The puppy whined as his newest friend stormed off, but that didn’t deter her. However, his interest was quickly caught by the new arrival.

Despite everything, Weiss couldn’t withhold a smile as Ajax tugged on his leash, jumping and wagging his tail so hard it looked like it would come flying off. He yipped happily as Olive closed the distance between them and dropped to her knees to rub at his ears. She accepted countless puppy kisses with a closed-mouth smile, eyes squeezed shut to keep out the slobber.

It was easy to sit back for a moment, remembering one of the many things that had drawn her to Olive in the first place. The sound of Yang’s bike starting reminded her of something more immediate and definitely more important. “Their ship is coming in soon,” Weiss told her ex. “You and Ajax can visit later.”

Olive allowed one more lick across her nose before standing up, fingers still buried in Ajax’s fur. “I know,” she replied, adjusting her purse and jacket as best she could without removing her hand. “Just excited to see him,” she murmured. Her loose curls bounced as she shook her head. “Let’s get going.”

They settled themselves into Weiss’s car just as Yang peeled out, head tilted down and shoulders stiff.

“She, uh, really hates me, huh?” Olive commented from the back seat, where Ajax rested his head on her lap. She played with a tuft of fur at his shoulders, lightly twisting and straightening the little black chunk. Ajax didn’t seem to notice, content with being near his person.

Weiss could hear the guilt in her voice just as easily as she caught it in her rear view mirror. “I don’t think she hates you, per say.” She noted that her words sounded weak to her own ears.

“You know what I mean.”

She sighed, doing her best to focus on pulling out into the street and point herself in the right direction. “Yes, I do. And yes, she does in a way.”

There was a momentary silence, likely Olive trying to muster the words. “Did you tell them what I said- those last few words, I mean? Is that what did it?”

“Among other things.” Weiss spared her another glance. “Neither of us were exactly fair to each other.”

“I tried to alienate you from the people who love you.”

Her grip on the wheel tightened, silver-painted nails biting into leather. “And I told you you’d end up like your mom. Who just lost your father because he fell in love with another woman.”

Olive winced in memory. “You know, after me accusing you of being romantically invested in other people, it was a pretty good parting shot. Fair, even.”

“Then we’re even and never have to talk about this again,” Weiss told her sharply.

“Agreed.” Her tone said otherwise, that they both had a lot to make up for, but at least she was dropping it. “So… what were Blake and Ruby doing on Patch for three days? Was it just a job? Doesn’t Yang and Ruby’s dad live there?”

Internally, Weiss breathed a sigh of relief at the change of topic. “He does. It was a job, and then some. Yang got it into her head that Ruby was in love with Blake and decided to send them on a type of a getaway so they’d have the space to discuss their feelings.”

“Yikes,” Olive muttered.

“What do you mean by that?” Weiss asked sharply, eyes narrowing at the road. Sadly, they had just left the suburbs for a busier part of town and she couldn’t fully turn to analyze Olive’s expression. What she wouldn’t give for a red light right now…

Behind her, Weiss could hear Olive clearing her throat. “I, uh…” Now she heard her shift uncomfortably and Ajax’s subsequent noise of dissatisfaction with being stirred. “What I meant was- it sounds rather intimidating is all. Did it… go well?” Olive drew out the last two words like they felt awkward in her mouth.

“As a matter of fact, it did.” Her words had taken up a cool, almost warning note. “They’re dating now.”

Olive seemed to miss her tone. “Oh, really?” She sounded dumbstruck.

Weiss got a glimpse of her expression as she glanced over her shoulder to change lanes. Olive looked every bit as bewildered as she had sounded. “Why is that so hard for you to believe? They seem quite pleased with each other, in my opinion.” Absently, she noted that her metaphorical hackles had gone up over the course of the discussion and did her best to stretch her shoulders, trying to force the tension out. Now that she thought about it, her neck was starting to ache faintly.

“Good! I mean, I’m surprised, but I’m glad they’re happy,” Olive blurted, struggling to sound reassuring. “I just thought that she-”

Now, Weiss laughed. “And Yang?” she finished. “Me too.”

A garbled mess of syllables stumbled out of Olive’s mouth and then stopped abruptly. “Yang?” she asked blankly. “What does Blake have to do with Yang?”

“You didn’t think they had a thing?” Weiss questioned in turn, her voice unknowingly mimicking Olive’s. “Ever since our second the semester, the two of them had this odd connection- wait, what are you talking about?”

“Maybe this isn’t a good conversation to have right now,” Olive suggested.

“Do you feel like walking home?”

Since she hadn’t gotten the brunt of it herself, she had no base for how Olive was going to respond. Considering the way her hands were waving in an attempt to dispel the mock threat, she must have sounded pretty convincing.

“Don’t take this the wrong way, please. I know what I said, but I never once thought you were actually cheating on me in any way.” That was a far cry from a promising start, in Weiss’s opinion. Olive continued, sounding incredibly earnest. “The first day I showed up at your house, I saw… Well, I _thought I saw_ the way Blake was looking at you. Looking at you as if you held her heart in palm of your hands. And it was yours to do whatever you wanted with.” Her words stopped abruptly, like they were tearing up her throat.

They drove on in deafening silence.

Weiss put as many senses to work as possible, ears focused on the bustle of the roads and surrounding city, muffled by the car and the quiet music. She wanted to sing along, to take up all the noise with a song of her writing, something that would get the emotions out. Deft, callused fingers gripped and loosened and tapped on the wheel, taking in the touch-worn leather and subtle stitching that held it together. Some days it amazed her that her sense of touch was still so acute, that she hadn’t gotten any nerve damage from vicious combat and absurdly rough landings.

Her ears picked up a sharp inhale from Olive. Hopefully it didn’t signify the start of a panic attack- she was uncertain if she was capable of helping her through this one.

Immediately, Weiss yanked herself from that line of thinking, from the words Olive had said that were prodding at the back of her mind. Chilly eyes devoured the scenery: pedestrians with dogs, license plates, traffic lights, signs her mind wouldn’t translate into words.

No, she was not thinking about _that_.

“Weiss.”

The woman in question swallowed hard. “Yes?”

“I’m sorry,” Olive murmured. “I didn’t think that this would upset you so much. I just thought... Look, it doesn’t matter. Please, don’t worry about it. I must have read too much into it- my own insecurities projected onto someone else.”

A light went red and finally, Weiss glanced over her shoulder at a mortified looking Olive. “It’s not your fault,” she said at last. “I just don’t want to think about ‘what could have been’.” She breathed deeply a few times. “The thought has occurred to me that maybe one of my teammates could have been- could yet be- it for me. After you said it, anyway. I’m always trying not to think about what could be.”

Slowly, she faced forward once more. A beat later, the light turned green and they were off once more.

“I guess I don’t blame you,” Olive admitted. “You did tell me that I would never understand your bond with them. So, I can’t really know what it’s like to trust someone with your life. Or know how terrifying it could be to risk everything to change that bond.”

Weiss smiled bitterly, hoping Olive could see her regret. “You know, I wish that we’d sat down and talked everything out instead of letting it turn into a fight.”

To her disbelief, Olive gave a quiet chuckle. “Me too, Weiss, every fucking day, but what’s done is done. Never again.” She paused, worrying her lip with her teeth and then added hesitantly, “But I could use a good friend. Someone I can be open with, who’s already seen the worst of me.”

“I suppose it wouldn’t hurt to have another who can say the same of me,” Weiss agreed, feeling her shoulders go slack.

~

Blake wasn’t remotely surprised that Ruby had been one of the first people off the ship, looking ready to hop on her bike and ride it through the crowd. Knowing her, it was only a few laws and the lack of her girlfriend on back stopping her. Put she pushed Dragonfly through the mass of people patiently, looking over her shoulder every few seconds to make sure that she hadn’t lost Blake.

She had been somewhat clingy on the ride back: a hand in Blake’s, their shoulders brushing, Ruby’s head on her shoulder or face in her hair, a hand on one’s knee and so on.

Initially, Blake was simply indulging her. As much as she loved Ruby, she still needed a retreat. One that she hadn’t exactly gotten since they first acknowledged their feelings. She’d grown fidgety and her breathing had grown a little on the sharp side. Then, she noticed the looks.

There were primarily humans on board with them, but there were also a handful of Faunus. It seemed that the latter had been the most bothered by Ruby’s little displays of affection. She may have heard ‘pet’ mumbled once or twice, though never to her face.

It occurred to her that Ruby might have noticed it as they boarded, Blake offering a light peck on her cheek in an attempt to soothe the subtle sadness on her face as they drew away from Patch. The possibility that Ruby had no idea how most relationships worked and had only ever seen the ones displayed in public also came to mind. Not that it mattered at the moment, as Blake had taken up meeting her half way in almost possessive gestures that had Ruby tucked under one arm or their fingers tangled together.

‘You won’t take this from me. No one will. Not humans, not Faunus, not the White Fang, not even the Grimm,’ she had declared silently.

Years ago, a relationship with a human, let alone the potential of three, had been out of the question. A human couldn’t see her as an equal and she would never pretend to love an oppressor. As children, she and Adam had sworn that they would never submit like that, would never let a human take control of something that was meant to be precious.

Some days, she wondered if one of his parents had been human.

Now here she was, a few paces behind her human girlfriend as they went to meet up with their human teammates, housemates and closest friends. Life was weird, Blake decided.

“Oh-god-he’s-so-cute!”

Ruby’s sudden squeal pulled her out of her ruminations and into one of the last situations she’d been prepared for: a dog. A very big dog. And Weiss bumping shoulders with her ex-girlfriend as Yang held onto Ruby’s bike. It may have landed flat on its side if she hadn’t been there to stabilize it as Ruby knelt to coo over the mutt.

“What,” Blake asked her partner slowly, “is _that_ doing here?”

Yang opted to lean over Dragonfly to give her a hug before answering. Blake twitched in her grasp, but made no move to squirm out of it. Human contact was getting tiring, especially considering Taiyang had gone for a hug when they left. At least he was polite enough to switch said hug into a pat on the shoulder. Yang, on the other hand, gripped her close, one hand running up and down her back a few times, the other firmly on a motorcycle handle.

“Well,” she inquired the moment Yang released her, folding her arms across her chest.

Her mouth quirked up at one corner. Whether it was Ruby’s audible adoration of the beast or Blake’s obvious disdain, she wasn’t sure. She did not appreciate it either way. “Olive needs a dog sitter for the next few weeks while she finds a place that accepts dogs over forty pounds. She promised repayment in both cash and as many tickets as she can get to any sort of event we want.”

It was, admittedly, a tempting thought. But her stance was firm. “Weiss needs to tell her that she can’t do that anymore,” Blake replied in her best no nonsense tone.

Yang’s half-smile grew to a full-on shit eating grin. “Then _you_ get to tell that to Ruby. A little soon to be making her pick between you and the dog, don’t you think?”

Gold eyes settled on her girlfriend and the problem at hand, currently belly up and wagging its tail rapidly as Weiss and Olive fawned over it in equal measure. Much to Blake’s chagrin, it appeared to be love at first sight for Ruby, which was more than she could say for their relationship. She groaned aloud, a noise lost on most of the people around them who had (wisely) decided to give their little cluster a wide berth. “Fine,” she grumbled, “we can keep the dog, but Olive has got to go.”

Her partner’s boisterous laughter made the instance a little easier to swallow, at least. “Good call,” Yang told her. “I wouldn’t want Ruby to have to make the decision either.” She leaned her head in slightly, offering a playful reassurance. “When she was twelve she easily picked Zwei over Dad and me. Don’t take it too hard, Blake.”

She just shook her head. “I’m ready to go home and lock myself in my room for a while. I’ve had enough people for the day.”

Yang gave her a conspiratorial smirk. “Don’t worry, I’ll keep Ruby distracted while you decompress.”

“Thank you,” Blake sighed, a twinge of affection knotting her stomach. How long would it take to get these feelings off her chest? What would happen when she did?

“Hey, guys,” Yang said loudly, “let’s get a move on. We can talk at home.” She gave Olive a pointed look.

“And I can take Ajax on a walk so Blake can settle in,” Olive put in quickly. She offered an apologetic smile. “Sorry for foisting him off on you. I’ll try to have him out by next week, promise.”

Her words fell on deaf ears as Yang and Blake lead the group and bike out to the parking lot where negotiations quickly began.

“Ruby is not driving that bike home without a license,” Weiss started.

Yang jumped in with, “No one’s going to stop her, she’s an excellent driver.”

“And I’m not riding with ‘Ajax’,” Blake added.

“Then who’s going to take Dragonfly,” Ruby said, missing her girlfriend’s words. “No one else has a license for it and it’s not going in Weiss’s car.”

Weiss nodded briefly to Blake, acknowledging her before turning to Ruby. “Actually, Olive has a license.” The woman in question waved shyly. “So, Olive can take your bike and Blake,” she tipped her head to the Faunus, “can ride back with Yang while you ride with me.” She folded her arms, effectively ending the discussion despite the ensuing glances that darted amongst the group. She let it go on for a bit, Yang and Ruby sharing a look, Blake eyeing Ajax, Olive watching for Ruby’s response and then Ruby narrowing her eyes at Olive in turn.

“Well,” she said after they got it out of their systems, “are we going home, or not? I can’t start lasagna while we’re standing here.”

Immediately, Ruby tossed the keys to Olive and made for the car while Yang tugged Blake toward her bike. Olive and Weiss shared a look that Blake didn’t care for before taking Ajax to her car.

~

True to her word, Yang dragged Ruby up to their room after dinner and dishes, a duty that Yang had grown used to over the months. It got relegated to her frustratingly often, but this time she had used it as an excuse to have Ruby at her side, helping to dry utensils and put them away as she finished the plates and chatted. It was easy enough to ask Ruby a question about Patch and their dad and just let her go on.

As the evening wore on, she saw every single picture Ruby had taken and those that their father had sent to her, heard everything that Marina had wanted her to hear and was generally informed about everything but what she needed to hear.

“So, you and Blake,” she inserted at the first lull in the conversation. The two of them were sprawled across the bed, with Ruby’s head at the foot of the bed and Yang on her stomach, her knees pressed up against the wall, toes tapping on it as she fidgeted and her head propped up with a couple of pillows beneath her chin. “How’s that going?”

Ruby flushed in response. “Really? That’s the first question you have?”

“Nah, my first question was about Dad. This is my second question, actually,” Yang corrected languidly.

Her sister scowled. “You know what I mean!”

“I really don’t, but I’m not asking about what you mean.” She teased, waiting for Ruby to toss something at her. Nothing came, however.

Ruby squirmed slightly, pulling her head up to get a good look at Yang. “It’s- we’re- going well. I’m really happy, Yang.” The satisfied smile gave her the urge to add, “Thanks for setting that up for us.”

On cue, Yang stiffened. “What do you mean?” Her ‘confusion’ was not the least bit convincing, especially with the way her surprise over wrote it.

Neither budged for a moment, though Ruby’s confident smirk eventually won out and Yang pressed her face into the pillows. “How did you know,” she mumbled through the fluff and fabric.

“Same way Blake knew, I guess.”

She quickly pulled the pillows over her head. “Kill me.”

“Nope! We know exactly what you were trying to do and you’re never gonna live it down. I mean, you’ve already confirmed you did it and everything.”

Yang gave another loud groan. “I hate you so much.”

A firm hand seized the pillows from Yang’s lax grip and she heard them plop quietly to the floor beside her. “No, you don’t,” Ruby said softly, fingers running through her hair. “You love me- us. All of us. And we love you too, no matter how not-sneaky you are.”

“Good, cause I’m never gonna be sneaky,” Yang muttered, relaxing as her scalp tingled pleasantly. She felt the desire to let Weiss play with her hair again and resolved to make that happen later.

Ruby giggled and scooted closer to Yang. “Not with that attitude! Take some lessons from Blake, she’ll teach you.” Her hand didn’t stop, short nails continuing gently in her hair and along her skin, as if it was as enjoyable for her as it was Yang.

She fell asleep like that, legs in a tangled mess, face down on the bed and Ruby curled up around her. In the morning, she would be grateful for a good night before a long day with Sable.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It occurs to me that I might lose readers when I next update, so I want to say thank you to everyone that has stuck around for so long, whether or not you continue to do so. I can't say whether it will be because of Enabler or lack thereof, but I feel like I'm going to know when I sit down to write out Yang and Sable's conversation, preferably sooner rather than later. Maybe I should have saved the warning for that chapter, on the off chance that that specific conversation doesn't occur, but I felt it was better to give forewarning.
> 
> Thank you so much for everything! Even if this story isn't even half over, this has been a wonderful experience because of all of you.
> 
> Alright, sappiness over, enjoy your Mondays ;)


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A few things:  
> One, I am the worst and I apologize.  
> Two, I can't believe I've been doing this for almost a year.  
> Three, that second relationship tag fully applies now. Nice knowing some of you ;)  
> Four, please be patient and give good constructive criticism as I try to write such a difficult topic. It's intimidating, honestly, but it felt right.

Weiss had always loved quiet mornings. She was a night owl through and through, but the utter stillness of the world around her had an affect on her that night didn’t. It was new and fresh and she wasn’t tired yet. This morning, however, the silence was rather loud.

There was no noise from Ruby and Yang’s room, which turned out to be void of life, sans what she theorized might be growing under the shared mountain of laundry in one corner. Normally she would be hearing Yang snoring softly and Ruby’s little mumbles and sighs as she dozed. It was far less surprising to find Blake’s door shut, with no light peeking out from underneath. No, that was completely normal.

She padded down the stairs, ears perked for any sounds of noise, and in there she found it as she leaned into the kitchen.

Ruby was flitting around the room with a practiced ease, one that Weiss had never seen in their cooking lessons. She narrowed her eyes a bit, focusing on the ingredients and utensils that her partner was working with: eggs, flour, baking soda, sugar… Internally, Weiss nodded to herself. Ruby’s progress was slow in the cooking department, but when it came to baking she was a prodigy. She settled against the wall for a while to watch Ruby work.

Her movements were fluid and her measurements unnervingly accurate for the speed at which she worked. It wasn’t rushed by any means, but there was an effortlessness that reminded Weiss of watching her in combat. She somehow always managed to be precise despite her swiftness. And that little, subconscious smile was there too, one Weiss was used to seeing grow into a grin after a kill. Or, in this case, after dumping her ingredients into the mixer and starting it up.

She recognized and then quickly dismissed how cute she looked when doing so. Damn it, Olive, she thought, this is your fault. No, it really wasn’t. Weiss had just never really let herself think about it and now she at least admitted to herself that her teammates were attractive.

“Weiss! Did I wake you up? I thought I was being quiet I-” Somewhere during her ruminations, Ruby had taken notice of her and was now waving her hands furiously and blushing red, not unlike Yang just a few days prior.

Weiss sighed and put on a smile, banishing her mild frustration with her newly acknowledged attractions. Right now, at least, it was just physical alongside an existing friendship and she had no intention of causing any drama over something so minor and fleeting. “You didn’t wake me up,” Weiss cut in. “I got up on my own, thinking I’d start breakfast or maybe set up the slow cooker.”

She slipped into the room and retrieved her coffee from the refrigerator.

“There’s already water in the pot,” Ruby reported quickly. “I just thought you would be up later, otherwise I would have already made it for you.” Weiss felt there was a bit of a kicked puppy look on her face- speaking of which…

“I appreciate the thought, Ruby. If you could set it up for me, I should be taking Ajax out back. Or cleaning up if he couldn’t wait through the night.” She released another sigh, feeling resigned. Mentally, she was already preparing for the latter.

“Got it!” Ruby replied cheerfully, giving her a thumb’s up.

Weiss took a mental note of how quickly her mood turned around with a bit of praise. She didn’t usually act like that unless she’d upset Weiss somehow or was planning something. Either way, Weiss had work to do and could think about this later.

She had spent most of the night sleeping in shifts, going between sitting up with Ajax so that he wouldn’t get lonely and napping in her room with a baby monitor on. Luckily, he wasn’t a very whiny dog and she had been able to get him out twice that night, so he (hopefully) wouldn’t be to hard to train.

Sadly, she wasn’t that lucky. The moment she opened the bathroom door, she was overwhelmed with a scent only slightly preferable to that of rotting bodies, of which she’d seen several, an exuberant puppy that immediately tackled her backwards onto her butt and a sense of general exhaustion. There was a moment of frustration and disgust, but a few deep breaths- through the mouth, of course- later she was rubbing his ears and allowing a tired smile as she coaxed him out back.

It was a trying experience, watching Ajax sniff around the yard for a few minutes and then come trotting back to her with a dog smile, followed by returning to the bathroom to open the window and get to work on her hands and knees. It took a quarter roll of paper towels, a dozen disinfecting wipes and several minutes with her hands under hot water, but the dirty job was done.

There was a strong, hot cup of coffee on the table for her when she returned to the kitchen with Ajax hard on her heels. She gladly took a seat and watched him snoop around the kitchen and dining room as Ruby cast a little smile in her direction.

Weiss smirked into her drink as the pup got underfoot and nearly tripped Ruby up several times, eliciting startled, high pitched noises on both ends. After the fourth time, Ruby shooed him out as gently as possible, looking a little reticent to do so. Ajax didn’t seem to mind much, having had his fill of the kitchen and coming to sit at Weiss’s feet. She stroked his head and down his back absently, and added ‘dog’ to her list of goals in the future. Maybe another Caucasian Shepherd, maybe a smaller mutt from a pound if she had young kids at the time.

A certain spiciness in the air caught her attention.

“What are you making today,” Weiss asked, setting her coffee aside to give more attention to Ajax.

Ruby tossed a grin Weiss’s way, her silver eyes bright. “Ginger snaps! Dad gave me the recipe before we left- he said that mom would always make these cookies in the fall and winter.” She turned her focus to the cookie tray before her, wadding up dough into balls and setting them evenly across until she ran out of room. “It’s funny,” she added, voice softer but still cheerful, “that this reminds me of mom, even though I can barely recall her face. Somewhere in the back of my brain, I remember this, though.”

“I’m glad,” Weiss murmured. She hesitated to speak beyond that, heart aching a little.

Her partner was unfazed by her lack of words. “Me too. I just wish Yang hadn’t left already.”

“Do you know where she went?” It was a surprise that she left so soon, especially after her sister and partner had returned home. Weiss figured that she would be a little clingier few a day or two. Honestly, Weiss herself was keeping them in line of sight or at least staying aware of where they were since they got home.

Ruby shrugged, placed a tray in the oven and finished up another tray before sitting across from Weiss, apple juice and a bagel heaped with strawberry jam in either hand. “She didn’t say anything to me.” Ruby took a massive bite out of her bagel, managing to smear jelly on the tip of her nose. She continued to take a drink of her juice, clearly unaware of the little red spot on her nose.

Weiss narrowed her eyes. To clean it or to leave it? On one hand, that stuff was sticky and Ruby could easily make a mess of it, but on the other that could a total invasion of personal space.

At that thought, Weiss actually snorted aloud. Ruby didn’t recognize things like personal space.

“What?” Ruby immediately looked uncertain, eyes following Weiss warily as she strode into the kitchen purposefully and picked up a clean dish towel from the drawer she had set aside for said towels. “Did I make a mess? I thought I had the worst of it.”

Her partner didn’t respond, simply running some warm water, wetting the towel and wringing it out.

“Weiss,” Ruby whined.

The heiress turned around sharply and Ruby jumped a little. Weiss was glad that after all these years she could still get that reaction. “Hold still.” Ruby held still as Weiss leaned down, looking her in the eye. A faint twitch to Ruby’s Adam’s apple signaled a sharp swallow and teeth sunk into a pink lower lip. Weiss instantly refocused her eyes on Ruby’s nose, disliking the way she had lingered on her lips.

With a gentle swipe and a visual once over, Weiss deemed Ruby clean and straightened abruptly. Was her face as red as Ruby’s, she wondered, turning away to hide the rising heat in her cheeks.

“Maybe take it easy on the jelly,” Weiss said briskly, returning to the sink to clean the towel and avoid a stain. “You seem to get it everywhere but your mouth.”

The only response was a weak, “Uh-huh.”

~

Sable’s place was a two-story house similar Team RWBY’s, not in design- there was actually a lawn and some flower beds and the house was painted very nicely- but in the number of people bustling around in the morning. From the time that she had parked Bumblebee to the time she finally saw Sable, no less than three people had passed her by.

A girl with lynx ears weighted down a bit with piercings had given Yang a wave as she began to pull out of the driveway, only to pause as a guy with snake eyes nearly toppled Yang over trying to get to the car. He had called an apology over his shoulder, but didn’t spare her a look after he climbed in, yelping at the lynx girl to get moving, that they were gonna be late. Yet another Faunus, this one with scaly gills along his neck, stood in the doorway.

“You must be Yang,” he greeted, looking half-awake. “Sorry about Coatl, he and Tawny were running late for a study group. They promised to take notes for Sable and both already owe them for saving their asses on the last midterm and that first group project.”

Awkwardly, Yang offered a hand. “Yeah, I’m Yang. I’m not, uh, inconveniencing them, right? I don’t want to-”

The Faunus laughed as he caught her hand. “No, even if you told them to go right now, they would be too concerned about you to even think about studying.” He ducked his head, looking earnest. “Whatever you have going on, it been on their mind since you first asked. They’re a good friend to have.”

Yang cleared her throat, remembering how she’d lashed out a couple weeks back. “I know.”

He withdrew and gave her a light pat on the shoulder. “There’s food and utensils on the counter and Sable’s room is on the second story, first one on the right.”

“Thanks, uh…”

“Kaito,” he replied, holding the door as she stepped inside.

“Nice to meet yah,” she finished.

He gave her a nod as he strolled into what appeared to be the living room to curl up on the couch.

From there, Yang moved hesitantly through the house, following her nose to the kitchen. Still warm eggs and hot bacon paired with cooling toast, sliced fruits and two jugs, one of milk and the other of orange juice. Despite her love of greasy morning meals, she wasn’t sure how well she’d be holding her breakfast considering how her stomach was churning. Ultimately, she took a tiny bit of eggs and some fruit, filling a glass with tap water.

She slunk out of the kitchen, doing her best to not disturb anyone who might still remain.

Yang never liked going to people’s houses, constantly unsure of a potential breach of etiquette- her parents always taught her to be a good guest, but had never exactly explained what that was. So, in people’s homes she treaded carefully, only loosening up after she got a feel for how the place was run. Not that she’d really been going to someone else’s place in the last few years.

Training to become a Huntress and actually being one had put a bit of a hold on making new friends or finding dates with people she’d like to sleep over with. Again, Yang lamented her increasingly small social circle that she had just recently become aware of, sulking slightly as she found the stairs and began the climb.

It was easy to find Sable even without Kaito’s instructions, as they were pacing up and down the hall with their brow scrunched and tail low between their legs. Yang let them make a few more rounds before realizing that they weren’t going to notice her.

“Hey, Sable.”

They managed to simultaneously stop abruptly and jump maybe two feet upwards. “Shit,” they yelped clutching their heart. Their mouth was wide open and their nose had crinkled along with their eyebrows and their jaw seemed to have twisted awkwardly to the side.

Despite everything, Yang couldn’t stop her laughter, throwing her head back as the mental image looped through her mind a few times.

“You are the worst,” they howled, even as they devolved into giggles as well.

It took a few moments for the pair to calm down, Yang taking a moment to catch her breath and wipe away some tears.

“I’m glad you’re here,” Sable said after they had calmed, slumping against the wall adjacent to their bedroom door. “I was worried about you.”

Yang cracked a smile and replied, “So I heard. Looks like your roommates think the world of you.

They rolled their eyes. “You do one person a favor and suddenly you’re their favorite person. It’s not like I saved their lives.”

“No, you did something more important- you saved their grades,” she teased.

“How very Weiss of you,” they deadpanned.

Now, the two paused, tension tightening both of their figures.

Sable broke the silence first, scratching at their head. “We should probably sit down for this discussion.” And they gestured to their room.

Yang entered without argument and sat on the edge of their bed, her plate on her lap and the glass in her right hand, thumb swiping through the light condensation and Sable followed her, door closing behind them.

She picked over her food, watching Sable out of the corner of one eye as she tried to find words. They seemed to be keeping their eyes on the floor, but occasionally she’d catch a glance in her direction. Whether is was pure concern or an attempt to read her, Yang wasn’t sure.

With trembling hands, she set her meal on the ground and turned to face Sable fully. She couldn’t stop shaking and her head was pounding and her head spun. Cold ran through her chest and veins and her stomach protested silently. It felt like her throat had swollen shut. She felt numb.

Distantly, she heard Sable say her name, but suddenly she couldn’t see anything, her eyes clouding with static and dots. Noise rang in her ears and everything was spinning.

Through the cold and noise and spinning, warm arms wrapped around her, holding her tight. Soft, meaningless noises broke through the static and slowly, so slowly, things became grounded again.

When the dots were gone and her body regained some semblance of normal feeling, she found herself half sitting and half sprawling in Sable’s lap as they stroked her hair.

“What happened?” Her voice sounded normal, but somehow wrong to her own ears.

“I think you had a panic attack,” they murmured. “You were out of it for maybe ten minutes.”

“Oh.”

As far as Yang could remember, she’d never had a panic attack or anything like it before. Like many in such a dangerous career, where she regularly saw death and destruction, she had had depressed spells and times where she needed to take a moment to breathe and cool down. This was new.

“Well,” Yang joked weakly, “I guess I’m not getting out of this one, huh?”

Sable gave her a dark look. “No kidding.” Their expression quickly softened. “I already know what you have to say, Yang, I just need to know that you’ve accepted it.”

At the mere thought, her stomach revolted again and she slapped a hand over her mouth until it calmed.

The Faunus sighed deeply. “C’mon, let’s get you to the bathroom. Just in case.”

Yang didn’t argue.

The process of getting Yang off the bed and down the hall was more difficult than either of them liked. Despite Sable’s equal and helpful height, they didn’t quite have the strength to help Yang move easily, buckling a little under the near pure muscle that Yang had worked so hard to build- which wasn’t doing her a lot of good right now. Her feet felt too heavy and her knees were ready to hit the floor with every uneasy step.

It was a small bathroom, but not in a claustrophobic way. The single window let in a lot of light and Sable gave her enough space to let her legs stretch out on front of her. They sat across from each other for several minutes as Yang opened and closed her mouth, attempting to find the words.

Sable had rested a foot against Yang’s knee and held a patient expression as Yang worked through her thoughts.

“Every time that I try to say the words,” Yang mumbled, “it’s like my voice won’t work or my body threatens to throw up or… some stupid crap.” Her fingers had taken to tracing the grout, its roughness a stark contrast against the smoothness of the tile on either side. It let her pull her mind off of what she was supposed to be thinking about.

“So,” Sable started, not bothering to pull Yang out of her actions, “you’re in love.”

Yang nodded.

“With Weiss.”

Another nod.

“And Blake.”

Yang hesitated a bit, but nodded again.

There was a pause before Sable finished, “And Ruby.”

Yang could feel their eyes boring into her, but ignored them for a while.

“Please, if you don’t talk to me, we can’t work through this.”

She sighed, but didn’t look up.

“I won’t think any less of you no matter what, Yang.”

Her head rose slowly. “Yeah… and Ruby.” She leaned her head back against the wall, staring up at the ceiling. She was too tired to cry or try to take it back or yell at Sable for even saying it aloud. “Damn it, Ruby,” she mumbled. “So fucking sweet and brave and…” Yang trailed off, sounding defeated. “Can we go back to your room? I think I need to sleep on this.”

“Yeah, okay,” Sable agreed, voice soft and empathetic. “Let’s go.”

~

After spending the previous evening and the night alone, Blake found herself refreshed by the morning. As refreshing as mornings could be, anyway. She took her time in the shower, cleaning herself as if dirt had seeped into her body and had to be scrubbed out. During her time on Patch, she never felt quite relaxed enough to meander through anything. It was good to be home.

Home meant long showers, Weiss’s cooking and not having to put on a bra.

Somewhere along the line, taking time to be alone required knowing where she could find her teammates the moment she felt centered. They had somehow become an inextricable part of her life. If she had felt this in her first year, she would have disappeared without a second thought. Even after their acceptance of her past, she wasn’t quite ready to be so dependent on anyone.

And now here she was, a smile pulling at her mouth as she ambled downstairs where Weiss and Ruby talked quietly under whatever they were watching on television.

A plate of cookies sat on the couch cushion between them, something that she was surprised Weiss would allow. Weiss had her legs curled up under her, the dog where her feet would be and Ruby sat cross legged, with a cookie in one hand. She gestured toward the tv with the other until she noticed Weiss’s lack of focus.

“Good morning, Blake,” Weiss greeted, smiling faintly.

The puppy lifted its head for a brief moment, but quickly settled back down, already aware of Blake’s avid disinterest in paying him any mind. She already liked him better than Zwei.

Ruby had a silly smile on her face at the sight of Blake, the same one she made that first time they had kissed. The thought brought a similar expression to Blake’s face.

“Good morning,” she said at last, heading toward them. Blake caught Ruby’s eye and smirked a bit, earning a confused look, but it was enough to keep her from making space on the side and gave Blake the opportunity to pluck up the cookies and nestle in between the two.

Just because she wasn’t pursuing Weiss didn’t mean she would quit cuddling up with her, something she and Ruby seemed to agree on. Ruby had already shifted so that her head rested on Blake’s shoulder, pushing her girlfriend to lean further into Weiss. Blake followed her lead, tossing an arm over Weiss’s shoulder to stretch out a bit and subtly tuck Weiss into her side.

She felt Weiss chuckle beside her. “Some things never change,” she murmured, curling herself up against Blake.

“I think it’s for the best,” Blake told her, picking up a cookie and nibbling it. “Huh, that’s good,” she noted.

“Thanks,” Ruby replied cheerfully, “Mom’s recipe.” She nuzzled into Blake’s shoulder a little and, despite all the crowding Blake had experienced the day before, it was incredibly welcome.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Not sure if I wrote Yang's incident as a proper panic attack or not, it's just Sable's interpretation of what occurred. It's some of the things I feel when I go into 'everything is too much' mode. I've been told what I experience is a panic attack, but since it hasn't been confirmed by a professional, I'm hesitant to label it as such.
> 
> Love you all!


	21. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've had a hell of a time writing this, but if I didn't get it done on the anniversary of starting this nonsense, it might not have happened for a while. So... pardon the dramatics and any grammar errors (and let me know about them!).

“Miss?”

Yang jumped, fingers clenching and digging into the side of her seat. If it had been a more solid object, she would have likely crushed it in her surprise. Her eyes darted around, searching either side of her and then quickly locked on the concerned brown eyes in the rearview mirror. “Uh, yes?” she offered, slowly releasing her fingers’ grip on the seat. Her heart felt like it was in her throat, as if she was fighting an Ursa instead of sitting in the back of a taxi.

From what Yang could see, the man appeared to be pitying her. “You seem rather uneasy, miss. I was wondering what could be troubling you so deeply.” His forehead was creased and bushy brows furrowed, as if he was unsure of how to speak to her. No, Yang decided, not pity, but empathy.

“Nothing I want to talk about,” she replied, her tone coming out clipped. After a beat of fumbling for words, she added, “I, uh, appreciate the thought, though?” Yang shifted awkwardly and pressed her cheek against the window, eyes firmly looking outward at the harsh gray and white landscape of central Atlas.

Maybe it was just the time of the morning, maybe it was just her imagination, but it seemed as if all of the cars had the same bland colors- white, gray, black and occasionally a light blue, all of the buildings had a relatively uniform and forgettable design, just as white, gray and black as the cars. Even the lights and people seemed chilly. How her uncle was fitting in here was beyond her comprehension.

The thought of Qrow made her stomach turn.

Yang loved her uncle. He was practically a second father to her and he took care of her when her blood mother had abandoned her and when her step-mother had passed; she still cringed when she thought of Summer like that, but it never felt quite right to call her mom, especially now. But through it all, there had always been a bond between Ruby and Qrow that Yang never felt.

She exhaled deeply, fogging up a large chunk of the window she was resting against. If the driver noticed, he didn’t say anything.

Yang never resented that bond, not when she was as close to her dad as Ruby was Qrow. Any thought of her father was quickly blocked out. He was the reason she and Ruby shared blood; he would be sickened and ashamed and-

Now Yang swallowed hard against the bile rising in her throat. “Can I roll down the window?” she asked quietly. “I’m feeling a little… carsick.”

“Of course, miss,” he replied, tone equally low. “It’s awfully cold out though.” His attempt at kindness was only making her feel worse.

But the window was already going down and Yang’s mumbled, “I know,” was lost in the frigid air rushing into the car and stinging her cheeks and nose numb. With an option to puke out the window and the cold settling her stomach a bit, she turned her thoughts firmly back to Qrow.

She was clearly incapable of making good choices where Ruby was concerned, so she would leave it to Qrow. If anyone could help her get her head on straight, it would be him; he was forthright, resourceful and cared about Ruby in the correct capacity. Or this might be the one place where he just left it up to her and Ruby to figure out. Maybe he would only suggest what Sable already had: therapy and/or moving out.

Both were solid options, she knew that. But she had balked at the idea of either of them. There was no shame in getting a therapist- she was pretty sure that her entire team had seen one at one point or another- and it wouldn’t be too hard, but the possibility of trying to discuss… _that_ with a stranger had rubbed her the wrong way. And moving out sounded like the worst idea ever. Of all time.

Her friends were her family, her support group and three of the handful of people she would trust her life with. They would want an explanation and none she could give would sound believable. They knew her too well and she loved them too much to lie well.

So, she ran.

Not without leaving a letter, of course. In hindsight, Sable had likely saved her from being hunted down and interrogated for disappearing with no explanation. If it had come to that, there was no doubt in Yang’s mind that she would have broken down and spilled her guts to all of them, something that she was definitely not prepared to deal with. The whole reason she took off was to give herself time to digest this… issue? Accident? Crime against nature?

Okay, maybe the last one was a _little_ dramatic, but considering the fact that she was having a moral crisis Yang would give herself a mental pass until this was sorted out, however that happened.

“Excuse me, miss, is this your stop?”

Yang looked up and around: the street sign was right, the building looked right and more likely than not, she remembered the apartment number. “Yeah, this is it. Thanks.” She handed him his money and a fair tip before getting out as quickly as possible, bag already hiked up on her shoulder. The last thing she needed was another attempt at compassion.

~

Ruby could feel Blake’s eyes on her and knew that they conveyed a warmth that Ruby definitely wanted at the moment, but… she also needed to think. Her brain was having a hard time wrapping around the situation.

Yang hadn’t disappeared since Raven first called her away and even then, she’d at least given them enough of a hint to follow her (a hint they puzzled out easily and use to quickly catch up with her, much to Raven’s chagrin). This time, she left an apologetic note letting them know that she would be back and the promise that she would tell them why she left, but for now she really needed space and time to work some things over. There was no “this is where I will be” or “I’ll let you know when I get where I’m going”, only a goodbye and “sorry I took off without a warning.”

The last few days had been so wonderful that she never thought that Yang could be so distraught by something- she had hidden it well. Ruby had spent most of the morning rereading the letter and all of the messages that had passed between them since she and Blake left for Patch. There was nothing there, though, which only proceeded to stress her out further.

After breakfast, a quiet and somewhat tense affair, Ruby had retreated to her and Yang’s room. She laid horizontally across the bed, arms wrapped around Yang’s pillow. It was big and fluffy and smelled of Yang’s faintly fruity shampoo. No matter how tightly she held it, her stomach still churned.

Being without Yang just felt wrong; that made Ruby wonder.

She had turned her mind back to when Blake had withdrawn from them not too long ago. Now that Ruby knew exactly why she had done so, it was a little easier to swallow, but that didn’t stop the tightness in her chest at the idea of Blake doing that again. For a while, she clung to that feeling, the fear and uncertainty and desire to help in any way possible.

She quickly refocused on Yang’s disappearance.

And somehow, she was hurting worse.

It felt like she sat there for hours, attempting to differentiate what she felt for Blake from what she felt for Yang. It _was_ different, obviously, but she couldn’t pinpoint how. It was hard to find the line between sisterly feelings and… other kinds. Yang was always just Yang, both when she thought they were full sisters and when she found out they were half-sisters. Somewhere along the line, Ruby had forgotten to think of Yang differently from the rest of her teammates.

From there, she had no real point of reference. She had very different relationships with all of them. There was no ‘standard’ and thus nothing to compare.

Blake had come in after two hours’ silence and quietly asked if she wanted to visit with Jaune and Pyrrha.

Ruby didn’t think too hard about the question, giving Yang’s pillow one more tight squeeze and shuffling over to Blake. Her girlfriend drew her in without much thought, allowing Ruby to tuck her head under her chin as Blake ran a steadying hand up and down her back. For a moment, everything was okay.

Now their hands locked together on the console between their seats and Blake looked so worried that Ruby finally spoke up.

“So… are you going to tell Pyrrha?”

“About?” Blake asked hesitantly. Her ears had perked up, at least.

Ruby’s gaze drifted down to their hands and rubbed her thumb over Blake’s knuckles. They were every bit as tough and hardened as her palms, born from years of combat, armed and otherwise. So strong and yet so vulnerable. “About how long you’ve been in love with Weiss,” she said at last. “I still think it would be good for her to hear. To know that she’s not so alone. And that good things can still happen.”

Blake winced. “We talked about this.”

“Uh, not really.”

The Faunus sighed. “I’ve given her so much trouble over the years, I’m not sure she’d like to hear me admit that I’m a hypocrite,” she muttered, sounding contrite.

“This is Pyrrha we’re talking about,” Ruby reminded her. “She’s not going to hold it against you. I mean, she might be a little upset, but she’ll forgive you. She knows how scary it is to put your heart out there.”

“You’re right.”

Ruby grinned. “Of course I am! Once all of this is out in the open, things will get better.”

“I just wish Yang believed that.” Now they both winced. “That was…”

Ruby’s smile faded, but she did her best to sound reassuring. “I mean, we can’t be open all the time. Sometimes we need to process and get it through our brains first. If you don’t have words to explain with, you can’t really explain it, right?” she rambled. The words sounded a little hollow to her own ears.

“Mm.”

Arriving at Jaune and Pyrrha’s apartment was a much-needed respite from the silence that persisted afterwards.

~

Winter hadn’t come out of the bedroom since she answered the door with messy and unbound hair, wearing nothing but one of Qrow’s shirts and her engagement ring on a chain around her neck.

Yang’s immediate response was a shudder of disgust at thought of what she had arrived at the tail end of. Her second was to high five Qrow in Winter’s view and enjoy her look of exasperation and embarrassment- which were funny as hell, in both her and Qrow’s opinions. She decided that it was definitely worth it and hoped that he’d washed his hands recently.

Despite that, he hadn’t missed how distraught she was, waving her into the living room while he grabbed something from the kitchen.

Her eyes wandered across the room while she waited, taking in the décor and surprising neatness. Every time Qrow picked up a place for more than a week or two, it inevitably became thrashed. Sure, it wasn’t pristine, probably even a little messy for Winter’s taste, but it was a new record for Qrow. It looked like the hardwood floor had been recently swept, there was no mud or dirt tracked anywhere, no dust rounds or magazines lying around. Only a jacket tossed across the couch, a bit of dust that had accumulated and some boots left next to the coffee table before her.

The actual furniture was obviously Winter’s and all of it arranged simply and functionally, curtains were pale and neatly tied back with strips of ribbon and the color scheme was hers. But little bits of Qrow had slipped in here and there, looking only slightly out of place: a brightly colored blanket that looked like some she’d seen woven in Vacuo, haunting paintings done in a style popular in Mistral, books about old heroes and legends on the coffee table and a type of plant that she thought she recognized as being from Vale. Qrow always brought home things like that from his travels.

Qrow returned shortly with a very full glass of what appeared to be whisky.

“None for me?” she asked, attempting a light tone as he sat down beside her.

He held the glass very firmly away from her. “Huh uh, kid. You gotta tell me this sober. I’m going to listen to this sober. And then we can drink.”

“Will Winter be okay with that?” Yang hedged.

Qrow rolled his eyes. “Yes, she might even join us. Now stop stalling.”

She opened her mouth to speak the words, but they just wouldn’t come. Her throat closed (again) and her vision began to blur. The urge to throw up returned. She shook her head firmly, eyes squeezed shut and forcing her breathing to slow. It was easier this time, at least.

Yang pulled out her scroll- something Qrow didn’t even blink at- and typed up a message. ‘I’m in love with Ruby.’ Short, simple and to the point. She passed it to Qrow with a trembling hand.

He read it. Once, twice, maybe a dozen times before he looked up at her.

There was no disgust or anger or… anything. Mostly he just looked tired, though he didn’t let her contemplate his expression for long, setting her scroll aside and pulling her into his side until the shaking stopped.

“I love you, kid, no matter what,” he told her, awkwardly patting one shoulder as she hid her face in his chest. “I just…”

She pulled back to look up at him. “Just?”

“Don’t look at me like that, Yang. You look like I’m going to toss you out on your ass.” He sighed. “I just hate it when my sister is right.”

Yang was on her feet in an instant. “Fucking what?!”

Qrow took a long drink from the glass and offered it to her, not saying a word until she had finished the entirety of the whisky, coughed a few times and then refocused her attention on him, anxious and expectant. “She’s watched you- and the rest of your team- on and off for a few years now, when she’s not out meddling with dangerous forces. She let me know how much she disliked the way you were with Ruby. Said you were too focused on her wellbeing and not on yourself, that you were being foolish and careless where she was involved.”

Yang nodded along: she knew the former and the latter didn’t surprise her. From what time she had spent with Raven, she’d learned that her blood mother believed in survival of the fittest and putting one’s self and their own goals first.

“Shortly after your… excursion with her, she sat Tai and me down and told us that you were too much like your father and Ruby was too much like her mother.” He paused and then added, “But with a lot less tact.”

Yang went pale. “She said that to Dad,” she whispered. Her knees were growing weak and she resumed her place on the couch. She didn’t feel like pacing anymore.

Qrow released a heavy sigh. “That she did. When she admitted relief that you two were of the same sex it, uh, got physical. Haven’t seen them fight like that since she said she was leaving you with him. And this time I had to be the one to break it up and then pick up the pieces.”

She couldn’t help a chuckle. “I’m sure that went well.”

“Definitely made the top ten worst days of my life.”

“Why am I not surprised that you have a list?”

He snorted. “’Cause nothing in our lives can ever be simple.” He drew his niece back into a half-hug.

Yang was still numb from the fact that he was taking this so well and went limp in his grasp, slumping so that her head lolled back on his shoulder.

“So,” he drawled after a moment, “what’re you gonna do?”

“Honestly? I thought that you’d knock some sense into me and, I don’t know, make me see how messed up this was and snap me out of it.”

Qrow scoffed. “The hell would you think that for?”

She shrugged listlessly. “You two have always been close. I just thought that you’d… ugh, I don’t know, want to protect her or something.”

There was a long silence and she could feel his eyes boring into her. She didn’t look up until he asked, low and concerned, “Protect her from you?”

“…maybe.” The word came out in a weak whisper, barely audible even to herself. Looking him in the eye was physically painful.

Qrow held her gaze. “Yang, you love her.” She winced, but he didn’t stop. “I don’t doubt for a second that you only want the best for her and that there’s no reason to protect her from you. But Ruby can make her own decisions; she’s an adult. I know you want to look after her, but you really don’t need to. If and when you talk to her about this, she’ll listen, she’ll understand, and she’ll make her choice, got it?”

“But-”

“No ‘buts’,” he cut in. “Got it?”

Yang ducked her head. “Got it.”

“Now, what are you going to do?”

“Probably process this a bit more, maybe talk to a therapist and possibly yell at Raven, but first,” she plucked up the empty glass, “I feel like drinking.”

Qrow smiled and faced the opposite end of the penthouse. “Winter, Yang and I are getting drunk today,” he called.

The response was a more muted, but still audible, “I’ll pick up some more aspirin and ingredients for some bloody Mary’s.”

Yang actually smiled. “You really hit a dust mine.”

“Damn right.”

~

It took a long time for Jaune to get his thoughts off his chest. Specifically, it had taken eight blocks and five minutes awkwardly sitting in silence under a tree at the park. Ruby had gotten to the point of counting dandelions is sight, now that she was no longer counting how many steps they had taken from his and Pyrrha’s apartment. Neither were particularly fun, but Jaune hadn’t had much to say.

“I don’t know how to tell you this,” he said at last, leaning back against the tree so that they were mostly shoulder to shoulder. “I consider Blake a friend and I know how you feel about her, but I just- it’s really- I’m just going to say it: she’s in love with Weiss and Yang.”

The last few words came out in a blurred rush. If she hadn’t been prepared for them, she might not have understood, but she just nodded. “I know.”

He jumped slightly, looking startled. “What now?”

Ruby smiled and shifted her position so that they were talking face to face now. It had happened so subtly that it took her a while to see how much he’d grown and changed. He was still a lot taller than her and was now a lot broader, with more visible muscle and the faintest hint of facial hair (she knew he cursed being a blond and therefor having it be nearly invisible). The most prominent difference, though, was his confidence- in most cases. This was an extenuating circumstance, in Ruby’s opinion.

In spite of becoming a respected leader and tactician, he was still a dork and no more socially skilled (off the battlefield, anyway) than either of them had been when they first met.

“Jaune, I know. And I’m okay with it.” She offered a disarming smile. “My dad told me about something called polyamory- being able to love more than one person. I did some research and I know I’m okay with it.” She hesitated only a second before adding, “Mostly because I feel the same about Weiss.”

Her friend looked like a deer in the headlights- stunned and terrified- as he processed this. “How?!”

Ruby shrugged. “Heck if I know; it just is.”

Jaune didn’t look reassured. “I don’t know how you do it,” he admitted, looking a little abashed. He persisted, intent on talking this out, though. “I mean, love like that is something special. I don’t think I could do it.”

“I’ve read that from a lotta people online,” Ruby replied. She couldn’t blame him for his confusion; it was still a little odd for her to think about too. “But… I don’t see it like that. I don’t think that love is finite.”

He made a face.

“I mean,” she continued, “you have both of your parents, seven sisters, three teammates and some really good friends. That doesn’t mean you love your parents any less. Or that having seven sisters makes you love them less than if you’d had one.”

Jaune frowned. “That’s not the same Ruby. You love Yang differently than you love Blake, right?”

“Of course, they’re different people, so our relationships would be different.”

“I get that, but that’s not what I’m saying,” Jaune replied, looking simultaneously determined and a little uncertain. He tried again, “What you feel for Yang and what you feel for Blake is completely different. Yang is your sister; Blake is your teammate, your friend, your girlfriend.”

Ruby laughed, the sound peculiarly sarcastic to both of their ears. “You know how I feel about Yang? Well that makes one of us!”

Jaune froze. “Ruby…” And he waited.

They both did. Jaune kept his eyes on Ruby as she suddenly took a great interest in the grass, threading her fingers through it and running her hand along the tips as she contemplated how long it would take for her words to sink in. She started counting again, her fidgeting hand pressing down against the ground where she dug her nails into the earth. Oddly dry considering how close winter was.

She hit ninety-two before Jaune spoke in a near whisper. “Is- are you- I can’t- I know a good therapist,” he managed. “He helped me a lot after, well, you know what happened.”

“Nah,” she replied. “I think I can figure it out on my own. Hopefully before Blake and I decide we can talk to the other two- which will hopefully come before either of them meet someone else. I’ve been thinking on it a lot and Blake’s willing to talk and my dad’s there for me-”

“Your dad is okay with this!” Jaune yelped, halfway between a question and an accusation. He looked a little green, come to think of it.

Ruby lifted one shoulder. “I don’t know if he’s okay with it, per say, but he’s got my back if I end up lo-”

He held up a hand. “Ruby- stop.”

She stopped.

“I really, really want to support you,” he said, “but I don’t think this is healthy. You’re my best friend and I’m worried about you.” She opened her mouth, only for him to raise his hand again. “Please, let me finish.” She closed her mouth and he went on. “I know that you and Yang have always been… close,” he managed, “and that all of your teammates have been through a lot- intense things that can create some really- strong- bonds. Fire-forged friendships can last forever.

“But, Ruby, I don’t think this is healthy. Please, I’ll get you his number and you can set up an appointment with Mr. Ward. Just go to three, I’m begging you.”

Every word was so thoughtful and wrought with concern that they were almost okay to her ears. It took a few steadying breaths to keep from yelling. He meant well, she knew that, but it didn’t make it any less frustrating. She honestly didn’t know what she was thinking, telling him like this. In her brain it had somehow made sense that if her dad- her and Yang’s dad- could accept the possibility, it would be only natural that someone completely unrelated would too.

The more she thought about it, the less solid her hypothesis sounded. A few more slow breaths, and she managed a response.

“Jaune, I appreciate,” the word came out a little venomously, “the thought and your concern, but this is the way it is. Maybe it shouldn’t be, but I really don’t care about what ‘should be’ anymore. Teenagers aren’t supposed to be combating _terrorists_ , but we did. We shouldn’t have been up against people we thought were friends, people who were ready to _kill_ us. I shouldn’t have these marks on my arm. Blake shouldn’t have grown up without anyone who loved her and feel the need to run. Weiss shouldn’t be afraid of her father and his actions, or feel his guilt. Yang shouldn’t have been abandoned and then used for her mom’s own purposes.

“But, here we are, Jaune.”

She rubbed her forearm. There was little sensation in the area anymore, the scars were beyond any healing her aura could do, even at its strongest and every day she woke up and saw a form of betrayal. She couldn’t see them anymore, but some days she could feel the sting where Cinder’s nails had bit into her flesh and drew blood, even as she cauterized the wounds she made.

Ruby breathed. There were far worse things than the possibility that she was in love with Yang.

She rose abruptly. “I’ll take your therapist’s number, but I don’t promise anything. I trust you, Jaune, so I won’t ask you to do anything or not to do anything. Let’s get back to Blake and Pyrrha, okay?”

Jaune’s expression had changed. He seemed to be contemplating something deeply, eyes staring into her like she was some sort of force of nature to be reckoned with.

She offered her hand and he took it without hesitation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can't believe I started publishing this a year ago and wrote chapter twelve (which I wrote first, go figure) during the volume three hiatus. It's been a hell of a journey and I feel like a more confident and slightly better writer than when I started. Thanks to everyone who's read, old and new and even those that have stopped reading for one reason or another (*cough*Enabler*cough*). Here's to finishing before next year!  
> <3
> 
> PS: If Jaune didn't come off as sympathetic (to an extent, at least) I need to do some reworking.


	22. Chapter 22

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, not dead yet!
> 
> Life is kicking my ass, but after these last few episodes I've been motivated to find time.

Yang slumped her upper body over the balcony railing, hair acting as a blinder to the chilly, gray world around her. The drunken nausea had passed now that she had time for her metabolism to burn it and some food in her. Winter’s cooking was pretty good, though not as good as Weiss’s, in her opinion. Not that she would ever say that out loud- ever again.

Without the potential threat of emptying her stomach on the people below, Yang enjoyed the view. It had been too long since she had been this high up and it was always a small, pleasant hit to the adrenaline, if not as much as it was from the back of a Nevermore, but few things could spike a heartrate exactly like that.

The glass door slid open behind her and she knew that it wasn’t Qrow. He probably would have grabbed her around the waist in an attempt to give her a start, but he was doing dishes anyway.

Winter stayed put where she was as Yang indulged her love of heights.

“Thanks for dinner,” Yang said, her words nearly lost to the wind. “And for putting up with me. Sorry for dropping in out of nowhere.”

“We are family, more or less,” Winter murmured, ‘family’ sounding awkward in her mouth.

Yang braced for a wave of sickness, but she was settled for now. “Weird, huh? That if you and Qrow finally get around to getting married, you’ll have two new nieces, a sister-in-law and more less a brother-in-law, too.”

Winter cleared her throat. “It is… far more than I am used to having. In time, I think it will be a welcome change.” Yang could hear her shift and lean up against the door. “I know that I have developed a… fondness for you and Ruby, in the time I have known you.”

At the mention of her sister, Yang withdrew, just in case. “We _are_ pretty loveable,” she offered lightly, flashing her best smile.

Surprising no one, Winter was unmoved by the expression. “Quite,” she said drily.

In her lifetime, Yang had experienced her share of awkward silences: between herself and Sable the day before, that time she walked in on Coco sliding her hand up Weiss’s shirt, the first time that she screamed her lungs out at Raven only to earn a perplexed look, when Ruby came to her to explain her first period and then sex, to only name a few more prominent moments. She wondered if awkward silences with Winter would one day need their own category.

“Very well,” Winter said, breaking the stillness, “I will be frank with you. I overheard why you’re here.”

The dots are back, Yang thought, awesome. She turned her back to the railing and slid her back down until there was something solid beneath her. In and out, she told herself, in and out. It was getting easier with practice, finding ways to cope with this reaction, but she still couldn’t quash it as a whole. Yang wondered how much longer she would be dealing with it.

Winter continued before the ringing in her ears started up. “And I admire how hard you are trying to act in Ruby’s best interests. It speaks well of you, how much care you are putting into your actions.”

Slowly, she blinked the dots away and her head rose, tilting her head slightly as her eyes met Winter’s. “You did not say what I was afraid you were gonna say,” Yang declared, mostly to herself. And thank the gods for that, because she was already getting pins and needles in her legs at just the thought of what she was worried Winter would say.

Winter sighed. “I would prefer to not know what you thought I would say.”

“Well, uh, thanks, I guess. I just want to get through this and hope that Ruby never finds out.”

There was something incredibly vulnerable in Winter’s eyes. “I hope that, regardless of the outcome, she knows how deeply you care.”

Yang blew some hair from her face. “She’s probably not too happy with me right now,” she confessed. “I just left a note.”

They shared a look and Yang had to duck her head.

~

Ruby blew in like a summer storm, sudden and vengeful.

Blake had seen her fuming on the doorstep, despite the tight hug and warm smile she offered Pyrrha as a goodbye. It wasn’t a hot rage like Yang’s or even like Weiss’s when she finally snapped at the end of a long day of pretending to be patient and calm. So, when they got in the car, Blake didn’t ask or reach for her hand, just offered a quiet, “I’ll listen.”

“I want to tell Weiss,” Ruby said immediately, “about us loving her and you with Yang and maybe me, I still don’t know, but I think she needs to know before she gets set on any ideas, you know?”

She stared at her girlfriend for a minute, the outburst having frozen her fingers before she turned the key. “What happened to settling into our relationship?” Blake kept her tone as even as she could, but internally she was concerned and, she admitted only to herself, a bit scared. Even though Blake never said it out loud, she felt she really needed this time to adapt to a healthy romantic relationship. The previous one had left her with more than a little baggage, after all.

Ruby cast another glance at the apartment building and her nose wrinkled slightly. She slumped back in her seat and curled in on herself. “Can we please go home?” she whispered. Thin, pale fingers twitched violently on her knees and it looked like she was quivering ever so slightly.

“We’ll go home. But we need to talk about this,” Blake told her, quiet but gentle.

Somehow, the drive back was tenser than the drive there. Blake neither relented or sought to argue, keeping her focus on the road and not on her inner turmoil. That could wait until she was sitting in her room with a mug of tea and a blanket wrapped around her shoulders.

Naturally, this decision internally made, Ruby started talking halfway there.

“…you’ll still love me if I fall for Yang, right?” she whispered.

Blake turned her head sharply, nearly veering onto a curb before quickly correcting. She took a second to breathe after that incident and then replied. “Of course, Ruby,” she said without reservation.

She could hear Ruby swallow loudly. “It’s not, you know… gross?”

Her ears flattened to her head. “Who gave you that idea?!” Blake had two possible answers to that, but one currently seemed far more likely than the other.

“Jaune suggested that I see a therapist. Practically demanded it,” she added, sounding distraught. “I’m not stupid, I know people are going to think like that, but… Jaune’s one of my closest friends. I didn’t think he’d be questioning my sanity or telling me to seek mental help. Sure, I knew he’d freak, but…” she trailed off again. “It just hurts _so much_.

“And, and, and- I can’t do that again, Blake!” she whimpered. “If Weiss hates me or if Yang never wants to look at me again I just don’t know what I’ll do.”

They were maybe three minutes from the house, but Blake pulled over at an open curb, turned off the car and faced Ruby who was hiding her face on the sleeve of her hoodie, the wetness of her tears standing out against the red fabric. Blake’s heart ached for her. It had been much easier to not worry to seriously about it, when Ruby seemed more confident and comfortable with the idea. Now, with it weighing so heavily on her shoulders, Blake wished that they’d talked about this more. She took another sharp breath and stole herself for the coming conversation.

 “Ruby. Ruby, look at me, please.”

A few more sniffles and a sharp swipe to her eyes and Ruby looked up at her. “Yeah?”

Her eyes were puffy and blood shot, the silver irises looking brighter against the red. A small tear hung on her bottom lashes, waiting to slip down her cheek.

Gently, Blake swiped the little droplet away. She found herself cupping Ruby’s cheek, much like a few nights before, thumb running up and down her cheekbone.

“I don’t know how they’ll react,” Blake admitted baldly. “But I know Weiss and Yang. They both love you so much. I know that they’ll fight and die for you, just like I would. They won’t hate you for this. And I never could either. Maybe you’ll never feel anything for Yang, maybe you will. It might be awkward and difficult, but we’ll get through it. Everything is going to be okay, even if we aren’t okay getting there.”

She wasn’t too sure of her words or how they came out, but she meant them.

Ruby didn’t look better, per say, but she was calming. “You’re right. We’ll be okay.” She offered Blake a weak smile. “I just want us to all be happy. No matter how it happens.”

“Me too.”

Her tears subdued, to an extent, Ruby stretched across the consul to hug Blake. The angle was awkward, but the contact was nice, and they fell into their usual hugging positions easily.

Ruby wrapped her arms around Blake’s neck, nose going down to her jaw and neck where she could burrow in and hide her face in warm skin and silky hair. Meanwhile, Blake’s arms slipped up to Ruby’s waist, where one held her secure and the other stroked up and down her back. She pressed a light kiss to the side of Ruby’s head, ignoring the way her hair tickled Blake’s nose.

“Love you,” Ruby mumbled into her girlfriend’s shoulder.

“I love you, too.”

The pair parted reticently, Ruby looking better and Blake feeling the same. Despite Blake’s reassurances, Ruby still had more to say. Or ask, as it were.

“How are you so okay with this?” she asked, her voice quiet and intent. “I’m not complaining, but… it’s weird to me, so it’s gotta be pretty weird to you too, right?”

Blake’s first reaction with a brief shrug.

Ruby did not look content with that answer.

“Mostly, I haven’t thought too hard about it,” she acknowledged after some consideration. “I know that, statistically, a lot of Hunters fall in love with teammates. Obviously, they don’t always last, but they happen even if the two people have nothing in common. The bonds formed by teams and partners are strange and most psychologists seem to agree that it’s the situations that we’re thrown into during our careers. I kept that in mind when you said you weren’t sure of your feelings for Yang.

“That,” Blake said, tone growing somewhat sheepish, “and the fact that I was involved with the person who was the closest thing I ever had to a sibling, which in hindsight…” She made a face.

Ruby accepted that answer with an understanding nod. “Okay, but I still want Weiss to know that we’re not… what’s the word?”

“Monogamous?” Blake offered.

“Yes! That,” she agreed. “I’m not saying that we invite her into our relationship, just that we let her know what we’re okay with. As a couple.” Her cheeks took on a light flush and silver eyes, a little less swollen, peered up at Blake from under lashes free of tears. She always got like that when she acknowledged that Blake was her girlfriend.

Blake never got tired of that expression. “Alright,” she agreed quietly. “That’s not a bad idea.”

“And,” Ruby hedged, “maybe we can go on a proper date tomorrow?”

The Faunus blinked a few times, caught off guard by the sudden tone shift. “Did you have something in mind?” she asked hesitantly. Blake had never been on a ‘proper’ date before.

“I’ve got a few things in mind, but you’ll see tomorrow. If you’re not busy, of course!”

“I can’t wait,” Blake murmured, a smile creeping across her lips.

~

Ajax’s weight was a comforting pressure across Weiss’s stomach as she dialed her ex. Her right hand idly rubbed his silk soft ears while her left tapped out Olive’s number, more slowly than usual. Not because she was out of practice- her muscle memory was flawless- but because her fingers were trembling and twitching so much. She nearly set her scroll down as she waited for Olive to pick up.

Luckily, the delay was short. “What’s up, Weiss?” Olive answered casually. She sprawled across her bed, hair cascading across the pillows around her and several sheets of heavily marked paper.

“What’s with all the loose papers?” she asked, suddenly less willing to talk about her earlier conversation.

Olive rolled her eyes. “Running back through my old drafts and notes. My editor says I need ‘more’. What the hell that’s supposed to be, he doesn’t know, but it has to be there.”

“Maybe you should try something new?”

She squinted at Weiss for a second. “Like what, genius?”

Weiss wracked her brain for memories of Olive’s books. She had read maybe two or three of them and none of had really been to her taste; they were more Blake and Yang’s pace. “Uh, tell me more about that weapon Yang and Ruby,” there was a slight hitch as she said the latter name, “helped you design.”

But Olive had noticed. “Alright, what’s the matter with Ruby?” She swept aside some papers so that she could settle on her side, head resting on one hand. “It’s gotta be more interesting than you giving advice on books you never actually read.”

“I read them!” Weiss protested.

“Name three.”

There was a long pause.

“I’m waiting,” Olive half sang.

“I _did_ read them,” Weiss insisted. “I just don’t remember them.”

She made a face that Weiss recognized as meaning “it’s a good thing you’re cute” which invoked a sense of nostalgia and the memory of their second date. Olive shook her head. “Next time, just tell me you didn’t read them. Now, tell me what’s going on before I come over and dog-nap Ajax for the night. My landlord never has to know.” The puppy in question stirred at the sound of his name, picking his head up to look around before setting his muzzle back down on Weiss’s chest.

Weiss decided that it was an adequate threat- she really needed someone to cuddle right now and currently her options were out of the kingdom or the reason she could use a cuddle buddy.

“It isn’t exactly a problem per say and it’s not entirely Ruby,” she started, still not particularly forthcoming. She paused to fiddle with her hair and could almost feel Olive rolling her eyes. “I guess that she and Blake just caught me off guard.”

Olive seemed to perk up. “You have my attention.”

Weiss licked her lips and then said slowly, “They said that the two of them are something called ‘polyamorous’.”

On the screen, Olive blinked a few times before developing a thoughtful look that Weiss definitely did not like. “…so, how much does Blake actually hate me?” she asked cautiously.

“Olive!” Weiss yelped indignantly.

Teeth flashed in a grin. “I’m just teasing, Weiss, lighten up. Blake’s beautiful, but dating your teammate would be pure idiocy, even if I was sure she could tolerate me. Besides, I doubt I’m who they have in mind.”

Weiss flushed. “I have elected to ignore whomever you intend to suggest they are interested in.”

“You sure, it’s a pretty good guess, I think.”

Not the first time that evening, Weiss wondered why she ever dated this woman. Absolutely insufferable.

After a brief stare down, Olive sobered a bit. “So, why is it bothering you?” Her green eyes were gentle and earnest, and her expression gave off only kindness.

Right, that was why, Weiss decided mentally. “I don’t think it’s bothering me, but that’s the only word that comes close to it.

“It’s as if… I’m apprehensive for them. Their relationship is so new and Ruby’s still figuring out her sexuality and I know Blake has had such a hard time with romantic relationships…” she trailed off. “I’m being protective, aren’t I?”

Olive’s mouth twisted in thought, one corner drawing up in a tight half-smile. “It sounds like you only want what’s best for them. You know, like friends do.”

Weiss made a face. “I didn’t… worry like this with Sun or any of the people Yang saw.”

“Well, the people they were seeing weren’t another teammate and your closest friends,” Olive reminded her. “And if I remember correctly, nothing ever came of Blake’s relationship with Sun. It’s okay to be concerned for them, Weiss, as long as you keep supporting them. Have you told them that you support them?”

“Not in so many words.”

“In which case, you can help me write a book for a series you’ve never read, or you can go talk to your friends.”

Weiss hesitated.

“No, there’s not actually an option here, go do it.” Olive hung up without another word.

Very gently, Weiss covered Ajax’s ears and said to her room at large, “Bitch.”

~

“So… she took that better than Jaune,” Ruby offered weakly, speaking for the first time since Weiss left the room maybe fifteen minutes prior.

Neither had said a word as they had shifted from sitting upright, side by side to leaning against each other, their heads touching and hands tangled. It was easier to be stoic than dealing with the way Weiss had stared blankly at them, offered a tight smile and nod, and then retreated up the stairs. Her expression was unreadable in a way that utterly terrified Ruby and, as far as she could tell, Blake as well.

“To be fair,” Blake half whispered, “you didn’t even bring Yang into the equation. She was bound to react better.” She sighed. “Not that I would call that a good reaction.”

“Yeah, I had my standards set kinda low. At least she didn’t try to talk us out of it, or tell us that love can’t work like that.”

Blake nuzzled Ruby’s temple. “But?”

“I don’t think I was ready for rejection,” Ruby breathed.

Steady arms encircled her. “That wasn’t a rejection,” Blake tried. “She just needs to process.”

Ruby swallowed a lump in her throat. “Please don’t. I can’t hope for this, Blake. I have to be ready for reality- the fact that Weiss isn’t going to be okay with this and won’t-”

“Shhh,” Blake hushed her.

There weren’t any tears for either of them, just quiet comfort. Ruby had cried enough for the day and she had always known this was a possibility- a likelihood, even. Internally, though, she couldn’t help but feel like she had cost Blake a chance with Weiss after years of pining. A soft kiss on the head was enough to quiet the thought, at least.

Of course, just when she had been certain that she and Blake had seen the last of Weiss for the day and was ready to put together some sandwiches for lunch, the heiress strode downstairs, bearing a determined set to her jaw. Her hands were balled into fists and her breathing was a bit on the sharp side.

The couple exchanged a short look, wondering what she was up to.

Weiss came to a stop in the middle of the family room and tucked her arms behind her back. “It occurred to me that my response to our earlier conversation wasn’t very warm and I wanted to make it clear that I support you both entirely.” Some tension leaked out of her posture and she gave them an apologetic look. “I’m sorry.”

Ruby hopped to her feet, nearly whacking Blake who moved deftly out of the way of her flailing limbs. “It’s okay!” she noted how her voice cracked, but couldn’t bring herself to care. Weiss supported them- even if she never felt the same, she had their backs. “I know it’s kind of a weird thing to hear from your friends and I know it’s not technically your business, so we really didn’t need to tell you,” she babbled until Weiss’s hands rested lightly on each shoulder.

“You didn’t,” she agreed, “but I’m glad that you’re both willing to open up to me. Thank you,” Weiss murmured, “for trusting me with this.”

Yes, Ruby decided, this would be enough.

“Thank you,” Blake countered as she rose from the couch to rest a hand over Weiss’s, “for hearing us out. You know you mean the world to both of us.”

Ruby didn’t miss the way Weiss blushed.

The heiress drew back rather quickly, turning hard on one heel toward the kitchen. “How does pasta sound? Or shall we save that for dinner?”

Blake trailed after her, offering her input, leaving Ruby to tend to the buzz of her scroll. She opened it eagerly, despite it only being a message.

“Hey, Ruby, I miss you. I’m staying with Qrow and Winter for a few days or so. Let the other two know. I’ll be back when I’m ready. Hopefully soon. Love you,” it finished off.

Ruby pouted slightly at Yang’s words, despite her relief at having them at all. “It doesn’t seem like you miss me,” she sent back.

“I’m sorry I left without a real goodbye,” was the immediate response. “And of course I miss you! More than words can say.”

“You’re just going to have to show me how much you missed me when you get back!” Ruby told her. She didn’t get another response and shrugged, following Weiss and Blake into the kitchen, for what would likely be chicken salad for lunch, if she was hearing things correctly.

~

Hundreds of miles away, Yang was relieving her stomach of its contents as the image of kissing Ruby senseless ran through her mind, over and over. She was amazed she’d been able to repress the thought for almost two years now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Yangst continues! But don't worry, there's fluff on the horizon, I promise.


	23. Chapter 23

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's so late! I have a lot of excuses, but none of them great :(
> 
> Also! I finished this off whilst on sleeping pills, so let me know if I screwed anything up.

Fingers drumming lightly on the keyboard and eyes staring blankly at her computer screen, Ruby played back a conversation with Qrow- one from not too long ago. At the time, romance had only been in the back of her mind, something to be pushed aside for more immediate and solid things. In that instance the concern had been Qrow’s relationship with Winter, ironically enough. What was the word he used?

“Career-oriented,” she mumbled to herself. Ruby squinted at the list before her; it was growing more incomprehensible the longer she looked at it. “Well, I got my career. Now I’ve got a girlfriend and no idea what to do. Maybe I should’ve listened to Dad and been more social.” She got that feeling that her father was suddenly smiling for no reason. The thought only irked her further.

“Why is fighting Grimm so much easier than dating?” she whined, shoving the laptop aside and rolling over to press her face into Yang’s pillow. Despite the amount of time she’d spent laying on it, it was still fluffy and soft and smelled like Yang. She would know what to do- she’d had girlfriends, and boyfriends, before.

Now she was mad at Yang too. Thinking about Yang was only going to make her feel worse, not solve her date problem. Slowly, as though the process pained her, Ruby pushed herself back up and stared down at the laptop until her vision cleared up.

“10 Perfect First Date Ideas,” the article advertised. But all of the ideas were dumb.

Neither she nor Blake drank alcohol, if they wanted fancy coffee Weiss could whip them up something that would make the average barista cry, team RWBY as whole had probably tried every restaurant in town and Ruby’s cooking was still a hit or miss, so that was out of the question. No way they were going to an arcade- too many people and they had a perfectly good console at home. Some sort of sports event? Both of them would rather fight a murder of Nevermore.

She backed out of the site, denoting it as ‘not helpful’ before she left and tried a different search: ‘unique date ideas’.

These were a _little_ more helpful. Or, they seemed more fun, at least.

Cooking classes were a definite no; she would much prefer to learn from Weiss, for a large number of reasons. Bowling was also a no, but she would bring that up with Yang when she got back. They hadn’t had a bowling tournament in a while. For good reason, but still.

The list went onward as Ruby vetoed activity after activity, either because she knew there would be too many people for the two of them or because she couldn’t stop thinking that Weiss or Yang would have a lot more fun doing that. There were a handful that she would stash away for better weather, group outings or even things to do late at night.

“A picnic,” she read aloud. What was so creative about a picnic?

Ruby paused to skim the little paragraph that accompanied the suggestion and her eyes lit up. She fumbled a few times, creating a mess of tabs, deleting most of them and finally running two more searches, one for scheduling and another for the next day’s weather. Both were perfect, in her opinion.

“Yes,” she breathed to herself, rubbing her hands together triumphantly. This could work. Oh, this could work wonderfully.

All she needed now was soup.

~

She should have let her go. It wouldn’t have been difficult. All she had to do was refuse eye contact, mutter a ‘good night’ and gone back upstairs.

Ajax had been taken care of, all cozy down in the bathroom once more with the baby monitor still on and the batteries at full life. That financial report that had been bothering her the last few days was off her desk, as was the recommendation that the moron who had accidently tripled the orders for new office supplies due to a filing error on his part be fired. Her father was off her back, probably for the next week, as well as Olive who had been placated by her follow-up message and was now minding her own business.

There was not a thing in the world standing between Weiss and a full eight hour’s rest.

But here she was with the sun was just peeking up over the horizon, or the cluster of buildings in front of her, at least. She was one of the dozen poor souls out at this time of day- if it could properly be called ‘day’- and if anyone asked her, it was not by choice. She’d be lying through her teeth.

Weiss was pretending that she wasn’t amused by Ruby humming a song that Weiss had written as they drove to a grocery store at five in the morning. Watching her partner out of the corner of her eye was making her smile, no matter how hard she tried to quash it.

“Did you decide on what kind of soup we’re making?” she asked, partially to start making a mental list and partially to avoid singing along and letting Ruby know that she wasn’t remotely irritated.

The humming shifted from musical to thoughtful. “Uh, no,” Ruby admitted. “You make a lot of good soups and I don’t know Blake’s favorite. Do you know?”

“Why would I know?”

Ruby put her hands up, slightly defensive. “I don’t know! Because you notice everything.” She paused and corrected herself, “Pretty much everything.”

Weiss turned her head slightly, eyes narrowing. “What does that mean?”

“Nothing!”

It was never nothing with Ruby, but now was not the time.

Ruby and Blake were going on their first date and if Weiss could help make it fun, she was going to.

She sighed. “Alright, what about the chicken tortilla? I know she’s partial to chicken.”

“Nah. It’s best with those fresh chips you make and they’re never good after sitting in a bag for too long.” Ruby tapped her jaw in thought.

“What about the beef and vegetable?”

“Nope. We had that last week.”

Weiss’s brow twitched. “Well, I don’t hear you coming up with anything. So, unless you just want to grab canned soup, you better make your own effort.”

“Ooo, how about the meatball soup?”

“I thought you didn’t care for it.”

Ruby shrugged. “I mean, it’s okay, but Blake really liked it.

Internally, Weiss firmly brushed aside the ‘it’s okay’ comment. “Alright, meatball soup, then.” She started putting the list together, deciding to make a whole pot rather than halve the recipe. “Okay, zucchini, carrots, potatoes, rice…”

“And that hot sauce!”

“I also thought you didn’t like it as spicy.”

“It’s okay,” Ruby reiterated.

Weiss’s brow twitched again. She reached out to turn on the radio, but a hand caught hers.

Ruby gave her fingers a brief squeeze. “Thanks for this, Weiss. I know it’s early and I should have planned ahead better.”

“You should have,” she agreed, still leaning toward the power button, “but I want you and Blake to enjoy yourselves. Can I turn on the music now?”

“How about you sing for me instead?” Ruby asked hopefully.

Weiss snorted. “I think that might be asking a bit much.”

Ruby leaned further into her peripheral vision, her bright silver eyes wide. “Please, Weiss? I always wish that you would sing more. Your voice is so pretty I could listen to it all day. Blake and Yang agree!”

As nice as it was to have her ego stroked, Weiss hesitated. “Actually…”

The sudden, apprehensive look on Ruby’s face was rewarding. “Yes, Weiss?” she asked slowly.

“I was wondering…” Weiss continued, equally hesitant. She stopped herself, though.

This was Blake and Ruby’s day, not Weiss’s. If she brought this up, it could (and knowing her partner it probably would) distract Ruby for the rest of the day. No, Weiss’s feelings could wait a little while longer. The idea of dating within the team was an old one and it wouldn’t disappear if given some more time.

“Never mind,” she said. “I can interrogate you on your thought process later. What do you want to hear?”

If Ruby was bothered by Weiss’s sudden shift, it was quickly overridden by her eagerness to hear Weiss sing. “Anything. As long as you wrote it.”

Weiss cleared her throat, reticent to start without much of a warm up.

The stars in Ruby’s eyes promised that she sounded just fine.

~

“And turn right up there!” Ruby finished cheerfully, just about bouncing in her seat as their little road trip came to a close.

“Vale Botanical Gardens,” Blake murmured aloud, a smile pulling at her lips as they drove past the sign designating exactly where they were headed. “Isn’t it a bit rainy for that?”

Ruby grinned at her. “Nope! I came prepared: the picnic basket has two thermoses of soup, one of jasmine tea, one of hot chocolate, two rain ponchos and an umbrella. There’s also a few indoor areas for the more exotic plants, if there’s nowhere dry enough to sit.”

“You really thought this through. I’m not sure how I’m going to top this,” Blake said lightly.

“There’s nothing to top! I just wanted to do something we would like. We don’t spend a lot of time outside unless we’re fighting Grimm, so I figured we should do something relaxing outdoors.”

A picnic in the rain, Blake thought. The closest thing she’d ever come to that before was when a sneaky waitress let her and Adam finish up some picked-over plates under the overhang of the outdoor dining area after a bunch of patrons darted inside to hide from the sudden downpour. This was definitely an improvement, in Blake’s opinion.

“That sounds nice, Ruby,” she murmured. “Thank you.”

Ruby flailed her hands in a ‘please don’t’ kind of gesture. “Nothing to thank me for,” she said quickly. “This is for both of us.”

Blake shook her head as she picked a parking spot and becoming what appeared to be one of eight cars in the lot. Rain wasn’t for everyone, she supposed. Water as whole wasn’t really her thing, be it swimming, fishing or sailing, but the rain was different. It was simple and fresh, and it left the air cleaner even in the denser areas of the city. And it didn’t hurt that the first rainfall after joining team RWBY had seen Blake holding back a grin as Ruby and Yang danced in the rain while Weiss pacing around, grumbling about them getting sick.

Another good memory was more than welcome.

The passes were relatively cheap and for the most part donations that would help with the upkeep of the land, which neither of them minded supporting. The man at the gate spared a single glance at the picnic basket and his only comment was to offer a general idea of the best places to sit. He smiled as he stamped their hands and wished them a good afternoon.

That taken care of, Ruby reached into a pocket. “So, where to first?” She waved a little square of folded paper around. “We can look at the map or make it up as we go.”

“Let’s just wander,” Blake decided. “Making things up is kind of what we do,” she added.

Ruby slipped one arm through Blake’s, carrying the umbrella and picnic basket with the other arm. “Lead on!”

And so she did.

They ambled along winding and weathered stone pathways leading across manicured lawns. They paused to marvel at colorful bushes and carefully shaped topiaries and trees turning slowly losing leaves or changing colors with the season, both in bloom and otherwise, taking turns reading out information they found interesting.

If Blake was taking mental notes on medicinal plants for their next long hunting trip, she felt no need to mention it to Ruby. Knowledge for its own sake was nice and all, but the use of it made learning far sweeter.

So close to winter, some of the plants were rich and green. The scent of wet soil was pleasant on the nose. The light pattering of rain on leaves and stone only added to the serenity of it all. Wind sighed in the branches and plucked gently at their hair and the faintest sound of thunder rumbled far in the distance.

Life had been moving so quickly for the last week that the quiet stillness was everything Blake wanted. Sporadically, she would stop short and just stare at the world around them, drinking in the sights and sounds. Ruby never said a word about it, either enjoying it herself or enjoying Blake enjoying herself. Her face would turn the cutest shade of pink when caught doing the latter, too.

The pair walked arm in arm for maybe an hour, including those pauses, before finding their way to the area the man at the entrance recommended.

The gazebo looked over a pond filled with lilies and cattails, the large, mossy statue of a woman watching over the still waters and pink flowers. Blake might have seen a couple of koi swimming around when they passed it, but had been far more interested in eating at the moment.

They sat on the far end, opposite the entrance, where they would be shielded fully from the rain. Ruby set out the thermoses in between them, along with napkins and two large spoons. Both seemed to agree that the meal was better appreciated in silence, not speaking until they were both full and their drinks near empty.

“You know,” Ruby said softly, “first dates are normally spent getting to know each other. But after four years, it feels like we’ve had every conversation possible.”

Between all-nighters during finals, sleepless four AM mornings and hours passing time in hospitals, it certainly felt like it. “It really does,” Blake agreed quietly.

“So… how about never have I ever?”

Blake squinted at her for a second. “That drinking game?”

“Well, no drinking necessary. I just thought that if we talked about things we’ve never done, maybe we’ll have something new to talk about.”

She considered that. “Okay, fair enough.”

Ruby hesitated and then started, “Never have I ever… pulled a successful prank.”

“Really? You?”

She threw her hands in the air. “I’d never try it with Weiss, Yang and Dad are masters and I don’t think there’s anything I could do to phase you.”

Blake smiled. “I guess that’s true.”

Ruby looked at her expectantly.

“I wouldn’t call what I did as child pranks- that would imply that they were purely for fun,” Blake admitted. “But it was pretty satisfying pinning my pie theft on the bratty human boy down the road.”

“How old were you?”

“Hm… maybe seven? All I know is that the pie smelled great, Mrs. Concord made them every week and that kid wouldn’t be smart enough to question the slice that showed up on his desk.”

The look on Ruby’s face was incredibly affectionate. “Sneaky little Blake.”

“Very,” Blake agreed. After a second, she added, “Never have I ever been caught with a fake ID.”

“I’ll do you one better: I’ve never had a fake ID.”

Blake nodded. “It’s generally the best way to not get caught.”

“Never have I ever been caught pretending to be sick,” Ruby offered.

“Me neither, but I get the feeling that if you were caught, Yang and your Dad would have let it slide. Probably Qrow, too.”

Ruby opened her mouth to refute that, but paused to think. “Now that you mention it…”

They both laughed softly.

Blake tapped her chin thoughtfully. “Never have I ever stolen a library book.”

Her girlfriend immediately looked guilty and Blake’s laughter returned.

“No one else ever checked it out!” Ruby defended. “And I’m still taking good care of it.”

“Did no one ever check it out or did no one else ever get the chance?” Blake teased.

Ruby pouted, arms folding across her chest and her mouth turning down in an exaggerated frown. Gods, her girlfriend was cute. And she was getting the feeling that calling Ruby that would never get old. Without much thought, Blake leaned over to press a kiss to Ruby’s cheek.

In an instant, the pouting turned into a silly smile and Ruby turned before Blake could fully retreat.

Kissing was still new and foreign to both of them, but they did their best. Tentative hands caressed each other’s cheeks, callused fingers cupped the back of Blake’s neck, one of Blake’s hands gripped Ruby’s knee, squeezing tighter as Ruby’s mouth moved against hers. Their breathing was halting and uneven and Ruby’s heartbeat was audible to Blake’s sensitive ears.

She loved hearing what even simple touches did to Ruby’s heartrate and kisses were even better.

Even when the kiss broke, they always seemed to find themselves nose-to-nose, foreheads resting together as they regained the rest of their senses.

“I was wrong about everything,” Ruby mumbled. “Nothing gross about kissing.”

Blake chuckled softly.

“It’s so weird,” Ruby told her. “I couldn’t understand why couples would always be so touchy and grabby in public. I mean, it’s still kinda uncomfortable to watch, but I get it. I don’t want to stop touching you. Even if it’s just this,” she finished, catching Blake’s hand and pressing a light kiss to the knuckles.

It was her turn to blush. “I kinda wish I’d said something sooner.”

Ruby grinned, though there was a touch of strain as she ran her thumb across Blake’s knuckles. “Uh, maybe not. I don’t know how I would have reacted when I was still uncertain about… the physical aspect.”

Blake’s empty stare made Ruby stop for a second.

“Oh yeah, I guess I never told you. I’m not asexual, I think. Yang used this word: demisexual. It means that I only feel uh, sexual attraction after emotional attachment.”

They were both a bit flushed now. While neither were exactly prude (especially not Blake), neither were used to discussion sexuality with others.

Blake pressed her lips together for a second before murmuring, “Never have I ever found the right label. And as long as you’re happy and comfortable, I’ll support whatever it is you are.”

It wasn’t long before Ruby was kissing her again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Minor PSA: I will not be including smut in this story beyond a 'fade to black'; however, I am working on some short pieces that either are canon or can be interpreted as canon in this universe. This is mostly for my sanity, as I balk at writing smut and don't want any more reasons why I don't have the energy to work on this. And if it allows someone to keep their mental image of two character's physical relationship, good for them.
> 
> And, if I've still got your attention, I'm working on a short story called 'Somebody's Hero' for Pyrrha, set in this universe. It's not a necessary read to understand the story in any way, but it's kind of my way of expressing how much I loved her as a character.


	24. Chapter 24

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My 'g' key is rebelling, so let me know if some escaped me! Also, I'm not sure how I feel about this chapter, so some good criticism would be nice :)
> 
> Just a foreword: I'm taking more liberties with the canon and fiddling with it, including how old Blake was when she enrolled at Beacon.

Weiss was nothing short of stunned by Yang’s sudden message to meet her at the airship station- alone. She’d been radio silent since she let Ruby know where she was the week before, offering only short, clipped responses to questions from any of them. Ruby seemed more than a little stung by her sister’s brush off; Weiss didn’t say anything, and if she happened to drag Ruby away from her quiet scroll more often, it was a mere coincidence. Perhaps Weiss could have left it to Blake, but she was hurt too. She just hid it better than Ruby.

This led to more than a few forced group activities, including bringing Blake in on the cooking lessons. She caught on quickly enough, but she had a habit of burning her fingers or cutting her hands on various sharp objects, even when doing something as mundane as cleaning the stove or drying utensils.

More than once, Weiss wondered if she was doing it on purpose, but Blake had never tried to duck out or make excuses. Maybe this was the one area where Blake was clumsy.

Ruby got a kick out of that idea.

Weiss’s scroll buzzed, pulling her back to the present. ‘Be there in a sec,’ was all the message said. There was a brief moment where frustration simmered hotly in her gut, but she set it aside.

It wasn’t fair to any of them that she had taken off without a word, but none of them knew what she was dealing with. Sure, they all missed her, but she had to have her reasons. Sable wouldn’t have been so reticent to look them all in the eye, let alone talk, if it was for no reason.

They said nothing to Ruby, but had given Weiss and Blake meaningful looks and a whispered, “Give her time. She’ll come to you when she’s ready.” If Blake hadn’t been there to pull her inside, Weiss might have blown up at them. Thank the gods for Blake.

A flash of golden blonde caught her eye and Weiss nearly leapt from her car. Instead, she unlocked the doors and stared straight ahead as she internally listed prime numbers going upward. Her anger over Ruby’s sadness (and, admittedly, her own) would not get the best of her. Yang had her reasons and Weiss was there to listen to her.

Even if she had to pull teeth to get said reasons out of her.

Yang paused in front of the car, apparently waiting for Weiss to step out. Violet eyes flashed with more than a little panic.

Weiss raised an eyebrow and folded her arms.

Supposedly unstoppable force meets immoveable object.

Luckily, Yang didn’t stay there too long. Weiss had the car and could (would) leave her there.

Hesitantly, Yang walked around to the trunk, where she tossed her suitcase and then slipped into the passenger seat.

Weiss locked the doors.

Yang audibly swallowed a lump in her throat. “I guess you aren’t happy that I left without saying good-bye.” When Weiss didn’t face her, she continued. “I am sorry, Weiss. And I’ll tell Blake and Ruby that too. I had a lot to work through.”

“So much that you couldn’t even come to the people you’ve risked your life for and with?” Weiss’s frustration was getting to her. She took a deep breath. “I just don’t know what could possibly be so bad you can’t tell any of us. There’s nothing in the world you can do to make us stop caring about you.”

“I… always believed that, but I’ve never had a chance to test it. Never thought I would,” Yang added.

At last, Weiss faced her. There was so much she wanted to say and so many questions that she needed answered, but all words had abandoned her. Yang looked so full of despair and Weiss felt every ounce of it. So, she did the only thing she could.

She took Yang’s hand in hers. “Test it. We won’t disappoint you, Yang.”

Yang shuddered as she breathed out harshly. She closed her eyes, blinked a few times and spoke. “I love you.”

Weiss always thought the ‘heart in their throat’ saying was absurd, but feeling the leap hers did changed her mind. “You- I- Yang!” she fumbled, mind racing and pulse skyrocketing. She clutched at Yang’s hand like it was the only solid thing present. She fought with mixed urges of swatting at Yang for springing this on her and kissing her until neither could think properly.

A faint smile crossed Yang’s lips. “I’m not done,” she whispered, breaking through Weiss’s panic.

“I need a second!” Weiss retorted, voice going shrill.

From the beginning, she had found Yang attractive, despite thinking her a reckless brute. She had, apparently, been good enough at hiding it, since Yang never once commented on it, but it had always been there for her. It wasn’t love or even a crush, just pure physical appeal. That physical attraction was eventually coupled with their odd friendship, but even after Weiss came out, she never seriously thought about dating Yang.

It had just been a vague thought in the back of her mind, cropping up here and there, but it had never fully left her, always occurring to her between relationships. For the most part, it never seemed like a good idea; they were teammates, after all and Ruby had always been in such close proximity that she never considered legitimately pursuing the relationship.

Now that Blake and Ruby had taken the plunge, however…

It didn’t seem so impossible.

Unless Yang was about to reveal that she had murdered someone- unforgivably, anyway. There were a few people in the world that Weiss and the general population wouldn’t miss.

“Okay,” she murmured, squeezing Yang’s hand. “I love you, too. Not in that way yet, but that can be changed.”

Yang sighed, looking far less scared before she added, “I’m also in love with Blake.”

Weiss was tranquil.

“And- remember that I never asked for this- Ruby.”

She didn’t jump or flinch. Instead, she remained stock still as the words sunk in.

Yang was in love with her. Yang was in love with their other teammates. Yang was in love with Ruby. She was in love with her little sister.

Dear gods, Weiss needed a drink.

“I need a drink,” she declared, though her hand never left Yang’s and her grip never loosened.

“And that is why I went to Qrow and Winter.”

No kidding, Weiss thought distantly.

~

Twenty minutes passed and found the pair sitting at an outdoor café rather than a bar.

Yang respected that Weiss wanted to be entirely sober, but couldn’t for the life of her understand it. Even Winter had snagged Qrow’s flask and downed it after their little chat; the sight had left Qrow sputtering in surprise and his pupils dilating in a way that gave Yang the idea to step out for a few hours. She was also a little jealous. It had taken every ounce of self control not to reach for alcohol every time she thought of Ruby, but she wasn’t about to become dependent on anything, not when she could get through this.

Ultimately, Weiss had kept her promise, and for that she couldn’t be too irritated. She also seemed to have every intention of getting Yang through this, one way or another.

Now, at a table far away from prying ears, pale blue eyes watched Yang intently over the rim of her coffee cup. Weiss had popped the lid off immediately, taking a lungful of coffee scented air and then refocused her attention on Yang. It felt like she was a particularly difficult equation that needed solving- not a great feeling.

“What are you thinking?” Yang asked abruptly.

Her companion blinked owlishly, caught off guard. “Nothing entirely coherent,” she admitted, setting her coffee down on the table. “I’ve been trying to process this information, but I have no idea what to do with it. I guess it would help if I knew your plans.”

“My ‘plans’?” Yang asked incredulously. “I’m doing the sensible thing.”

One hand came up, like Weiss was ready to cover her face with it. She quickly curled it into a fist and returned it to her lap. “Yang, there is absolutely no such thing as sensible under these circumstances. I’m not aware of any conclusive research on consensual, well,” Weiss cleared her throat and then forced out the word, “incest. Especially not between two huntress half sisters, in which there’s no possibility of-”

“Can you stop? Like, now?”

Weiss didn’t have to be told a second time.

Yang took a long sip of her coffee, burning her tongue slightly, but not beyond that of an easy heal for her aura. “Look: I’m never telling Ruby. I’m going to see a therapist, work my way through this and hopefully salvage all of my relationships with the three of you.”

“There’s nothing to ‘salvage’, Yang,” Weiss insisted. “I know that you didn’t ask for this and that you only want Ruby to be happy. I won’t pretend that isn’t strange,” she admitted. “But you need to understand that I’m not going to stop caring about you over this. None of us will.”

“Because Ruby and Blake will never know.”

Weiss took a breath. “Well, I’m sure they wanted to talk to you about this themselves, but the matter might be a bit more complicated than that.”

“How, Weiss? How can it be more complicated than _this_?” The question was punctuated with a wide, vague gesture that was meant to convey ‘all of these stupid things that are happening right now’.

Her point seemed to have gotten across, but Weiss forged onwards. “The day after you left, Blake and Ruby told me that they were polyamorous.”

“Polyam-what?”

“They are both interested in ethically seeing other people: discussion, negotiation, approvals and even the two of them dating a third person as a unit, if they meet the right one,” Weiss explained.

In the back of her mind, Yang was betting that Weiss had spent hours researching this after they had told her. “That’s… not an actual thing?” Yang tried.

Weiss huffed at her, folding her arms in the same way she had in the car, something Yang translated as a threat.

“I mean, that’s only if you aren’t actually in love with the person you’re with, right?”

In a rare turn of events, Weiss made sad eyes at her. “So, you don’t love us all equally?”

Yang’s brain was doing the snow thing that TV’s did when everything went to hell. “Of course I do! You’re all equally important to me in such different ways! I just- I don’t know what I’d do without any of you, I just-” The guilt and embarrassment was overwhelming, but at least the dots were gone and she wasn’t queasy. Yet.

A gentle hand on hers, the same one from earlier, calmed her.

“Exactly,” Weiss murmured. “Every relationship is different and important in its own way, just like our friendships. Having multiple friends doesn’t mean that they all aren’t good enough, just that you have a strong bond with a lot of different people. Just like Ruby and Blake; they’re both so full of love and affection, I’m honestly not surprised that they would have enough for others.”

Yang groaned, pulling her hand out of Weiss’s grip and put her face on the table. “But it needs to not work that way. I don’t want to love all of you. I want it to be easy and normal and not… gross.”

She didn’t see Weiss move, too content to leave her head where it was, but the soft voice at her ear signaled that Weiss had shifted. “Do you feel gross? When you think about Ruby?”

For a moment, she just sat there, soaking in the chilly metal and scent of old iron. Much like the sensation of leaning over Qrow and Winter’s balcony, this was relaxing. “Only when I remember who we are,” she confessed. “I think about how proud of her I am, or how happy I am when I make her laugh or smile every time she looks at me. It’s a good, warm feeling. Until I open my mouth and start to say ‘sis’ or think of how happy _our_ dad would be to see how great she’s doing and how far she’s going to go, despite everything.

“Then it’s like being punched in the gut.” She brought one hand to her solar plexus. “I haven’t felt sick to my stomach in almost a week, but before that, I was nauseous every time. Every time, I would find a reason to stop looking at her, stop touching her. Anything like that.” She bit out a sardonic laugh. “Of course, it rarely hits me in the moment. Not until later in the night, when my brain runs through the day.”

With that same, dark hint of humor, she added, “You wouldn’t believe the number of times I’ve had to push Ruby out of my personal space at night. Or the number of excuses I’ve tried to come up with to separate our beds.” More quietly, “Not that I can ever bring myself to do it.”

There was a long silence as Weiss seemed to mull over her words, which was fine by Yang. She needed to stop talking for a minute. For all of Weiss’s unconditional support, Yang didn’t want to risk grossing her out; she could only imagine the disgust Weiss would feel if she thought of her own sister.

Finally, she spoke again. “If you knew for a fact that Ruby felt the same, what would you do?” Weiss asked in a whisper.

“Nothing,” Yang said immediately. “There’s still Blake. And Dad. They don’t need this.”

Weiss sighed. “I understand not wanting your father to know, but what if Blake didn’t care?”

“But she would!”

“Humor me,” Weiss deadpanned. “Hypothetically, in a world where no one would care, what would you do?”

Yang didn’t want to think about that at all. It was far too tempting a world to live in, even for a moment’s thought. “I probably would’ve done something years ago.”

She felt a pressure against her head, the press of Weiss’s lips to her hair and then the slightest wetness on her scalp. “Do you really think you can just pretend all of that never happened?” It wasn’t meant to be cruel, but the words struck home.

“You know me. I’m stubborn enough to try.”

Another sigh. “We’ll get you a really good therapist. Maybe the one Jaune recommended to Ruby.”

“What?” Yang was sitting upright in an instant. It was only Weiss’s foresight that had kept her from getting a broken nose from the force of Yang’s head shooting upwards.

“Ruby didn’t elect to tell me the details,” Weiss said softly, “but I think it had to do with her and Blake being polyamorous.”

Rather hypocritically, even in her own mind, Yang was suddenly fuming. “That dumbass… Ruby’s probably scared enough as it is; the last thing she needs is him giving her crap over this. Who does he think he is?” She mumbled half-hearted plans and threats against Jaune’s life for a bit, grateful that Weiss didn’t feel the need to call her on the sudden change of heart.

Thin, cold fingers laced with her own. “So, you’ll support them?”

Yang felt her mouth twist oddly- maybe a frown, perhaps a grimace. “I mean,” she sighed, “it’s my sister and my partner.” Her face did another weird scrunch and it was beginning to ache slightly. “I’d do anything for them.”

Weiss took her words easily. “I know, but,” and there it was, “don’t let yourself suffer because you think it’s the best for them. Even if it hurts us, we’d rather be there for you than have you say nothing.”

“I know,” Yang murmured. “I just hate it. Haven’t our lives been hard enough?”

“They’d be harder if we were alone.”

She smiled, covering both of their hands with her free one. “When did you become the emotionally healthy one?”

Weiss laughed. “Did you miss the part where I almost drove off without you?”

“I didn’t say there was a high standard,” Yang shot back.

“What were you waiting for anyway? A welcome back hug?”

There was a long pause.

“Funny story, actually.” Yang rubbed the back of her neck, or she would have if Weiss hadn’t suddenly added her other hand to the pile, trapping her there. At least she could still avert her eyes. “I was sorta, uh… I was planning on-” she cleared her throat. “Pushing you against the car and kissing you until you either shoved me off or forgot that you had a reason to be mad at me.”

Another pause.

“Yang Xiao Long…” Weiss shook her head slowly, looking somewhere between nonplussed and generally exasperated. “I can’t tell if you’re an idiot or a genius.”

“I’m gonna pretend you’re leaning toward the second one.”

~

“Your toes are freezing.”

Ruby snuggled closer to Blake, nose pressing into her girlfriend’s neck. “My fingers and toes are always cold. Not as cold as Weiss’s, but it’s about normal for me.” She had read about kissing someone’s neck before, but it always seemed kind of weird to her. It would probably be even weirder if she did it while Blake was trying to kill a dragon, so she refrained from trying it out anyway.

“I know. Get them off of me,” Blake told her, scooting to the side so that Ruby’s foot wasn’t resting on her thigh. “I can feel it through my pants and your socks.”

“Hmph,” she grumbled in response, tucking her feet underneath her and returning to her spot crushed against Blake’s side, this time with her head just on her shoulder.

The Faunus hummed a bit. “That’s better. Your nose is cold, too.”

Ruby could practically hear Blake’s grin as the in-game time slowed to a crawl, tracking an arrow as it imbedded itself in the dragon’s eye. “I know,” Ruby echoed. “I’ll keep it off your neck.”

There was a slight shift. “Yang never minds you doing that, does she?”

“Not really, she was always my personal space heater in the winter. In the summer she loved to chase me down and tackle me in a hug, because she knew how warm she was.” Ruby smiled in memory. “I yelled at her a lot, but I never really minded; dad didn’t like it much, though. Qrow joked that he was worried about me shattering all our glasses screaming like that.”

“Was Qrow there a lot?” Blake asked, her attention only half focused on her game, judging by the fact that she’d run into a wall and was in the process of burying her character’s face in it.

Ruby gently removed Blake’s thumb from the left stick. “More when we were younger,” she replied, “and he was teaching. I don’t think I liked it much beyond pushing his luck with the school board and helping a handful of students he saw potential in. He wanted to help raise us, I think.”

Blake finally changed her character’s course, aiming her in the right direction. “Nothing against your uncle, but he doesn’t seem the parenting type.”

“He really isn’t,” Ruby agreed, sounding more than a little affectionate. “But he did- does- his best.”

The ensuing silence felt loud to Ruby’s ears.

“I guess you never had anyone like that,” she murmured.

Blake paused her game and pressed her temple to Ruby’s. With practiced ease, one arm slipped over Ruby’s shoulder and a different one wrapped around Blake’s waist, freezing fingers knotting in the fabric. Blake was quiet for a second.

Ruby tapped their heads together lightly: take your time.

“I had a chance at it, once. It was just before Sienna Khan took over the White Fang, when Adam started saying humans would never let us be equals. And when I started believing it. There was a couple that wanted to take me in: the former leader, Ghira, and his wife, Kali.” Blake took a deep breath. “They were wonderful people and, as far as Menagerie is concerned, they still are; they just got tired of fighting, in both senses of the word.

“Adam and I were just a few of many orphans who lost their parents to illness or harsh winters or mining accidents, but they liked me, for some reason.” For that, Ruby gave her another tap and Blake chuckled weakly. “I think it was because I had the same feature as Kali.” She flicked her ears; Ruby was learning to recognize the faint shift in Blake’s scalp as the secondary ears moved. “And I don’t think they could have kids- or they were scared of what could happen to the kid with their status.”

Ruby thought that over. “When Sienna Kahn took over… you left five years later… so you were fourteen and already able to defend yourself.”

“Exactly.”

“But you didn’t want to stop fighting,” Ruby continued.

“Right again,” Blake told her, sounding a little down. “I used to wonder what it would have been like, having a family, even for a few years.” She shifted to press a kiss against Ruby’s cheek. “It’s great,” she whispered.

Ruby sniffed. “Blake,” she whined, “you’re gonna make me cry.” Her head burrowed back into Blake’s neck, this time making sure to press her nose into the shoulder of her hoodie.

Blake sighed in contentment.

The peace didn’t last long, the sound of a car- Weiss’s car, no doubt- pulling up made them rise from the couch.

Weiss had been gone since that morning, first to drop Ajax off with Olive and then to run some errands. She shot them a message less than an hour into her running around to let them know she’d be home a bit later than planned and not to worry about her.

Neither of them had known what to think, what with Weiss’s carefully planned and scheduled shopping trips, but they did know that they were supposed to be out there to help her unload the car.

Of course, they were intercepted before they could go far.

No one saw Ruby leap into Yang’s arms, except maybe Yang, who followed through with Ruby’s forward momentum and gave her a twirl. “I’ve missed you!” she yelped, clutching Yang’s shoulders and grinning widely. For all of her disappointment at Yang leaving without a word, she wasn’t going to turn down a reunion hug.

She saw the grin fade from Yang’s face and suddenly Ruby's feet were on the ground and Yang was clutching her tightly. “I’ve missed you too. I’m sorry I was gone so long.”

“You’re back,” Ruby told her, voice muffled and breathing somewhat stifled by Yang’s solid shoulder. This is so much better than the pillow, she thought, rubbing her hand up and down Yang’s back. “Just don’t do that again and we’re okay.”

“Not if I can help it,” she replied. “Promise.”

 “I’ll hold you to that,” she muttered. The implied threat was half-hearted, to say the least.

She never felt safer than when Yang was hugging her.

And then there was a firm, warm pressure against her back and dark hair came into her vision as Blake hugged Yang around her. “We all missed you.”

“I know,” Yang assured her.

Off to the side, Weiss cleared her throat. “If the three of you don’t mind, I have ice cream, milk and meat that all needs to go in the refrigerator. The three of you can hug all you want after we’re done unloading.”

“Give us a minute,” Yang told her. “They’re going to be mad at me in ten minutes, let me have this.”

Weiss sighed and joined the group, hugging Yang from behind.

Ruby made a happy squeaking noise as she managed to get her arms around both of them.

“Ruby, I was going to-! Ugh, forget it.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've got a few smaller projects going on and the possibility of taking up commissions, since money is getting tight, so look out for those!
> 
> Thanks for reading and have a great weekend <3


	25. Chapter 25

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another hard chapter to write, but I think the next few- before shit kicks off again- will be a little easier and come more quickly. I took more time with this one, so I feel more certain about it, even if it was a pain to put down.
> 
> I'm just gonna have some tea and start outlining the next chapter. There might be a small (less than a month) time skip, but we'll see.

“Dr. Nereus Ward, huntsman and huntress psychologist,” Yang murmured, staring at the little business card pinched between her thumb and forefinger. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Ruby flinch and Blake go still. What about the situation had bothered Jaune so much that he suggested this? Why hadn’t he suggested it the dozens of times one of them was beating themselves up over a hurt teammate?

Weiss closed the refrigerator rather loudly, causing all of them to jump. “Jaune’s therapist, apparently,” she said, like Yang didn’t already know. “I’ve done a little research on him- he’s very well regarded. He has a focus on the long-term impacts of such a high stress and dangerous job, both on the individual and their family.” She closed the short distance between herself and Yang, one hand resting on the crook of her elbow.

Their eyes met briefly, Weiss’s look questioning.

Yang took a quick picture of the card with her scroll and returned it to her pocket. She turned around to face the others, dislodging Weiss’s hand.

“Uh, are you going to look him up too?” Ruby asked hesitantly. “I only took the card because Jaune practically threw it at me.”

“And why did he do that?” Yang deflected.

Now Ruby and Blake shared a look, one that made Yang wonder what they had thought of her and Weiss’s little exchange. And whether they suspected Weiss knew more than them.

“Maybe we should sit down for this,” Blake said after a minute of awkward silence, gesturing toward the kitchen table.

“Yeah, sure.” Yang didn’t mind. Depending on what they got out of her after this conversation, she may have needed to sit down anyway.

Blake and Ruby took one side, Yang the opposite and Weiss the head of the table, placed directly between the sisters. One hand held Yang’s under the table and, judging by the way Ruby was shifting her arms, Weiss and Blake were holding Ruby’s.

She glanced around the table, heart swelling for a second. Weiss, stone faced and strong in the face of her teammates’ emotional turmoil. Blake, giving a warm and supporting smile despite the tension. And Ruby. Their wonderful little leader, ever the bravest of them. Her jaw was tight in a way that conveyed determination and Yang could see the thoughts racing in those bright silver eyes.

“Blake and I,” Ruby started slowly, pausing to take a sharp breath, “are polyamorous. Which-”

“Means that you can love more than one person at a time and are okay with each other dating other people,” Yang filled in briskly, fingers drumming on her knee. “Did vomit boy really flip his shit over that?” she asked, earlier irritation coming through. In the back of her mind, she noted that she hadn’t called him that in almost four years.

Ruby looked down at the table. “He was just worried. Once he realizes that the people involved are happy and consenting _adults_ , he’ll get over it.” A muscle in her jaw tensed as she finished speaking, like she had something to add on. Something angry, Yang would bet. She knew Ruby’s frustration tics- when she was younger, that little jaw clench would normally be followed by something scathing or a huff and crossed arms.

Yang caught the faintest flex of Blake’s arm as she squeezed Ruby’s hand, likely in silent encouragement. But there was something off. Blake looked almost sad, but there was no frustration, like she could be angry with Jaune the way Yang was.

Or, a voice in her head that sounded an awful lot like her dad’s, suggested she was looking for more trouble where there wasn’t any. Which… was totally possible.

“Well, fuck him,” Yang said bluntly. “Let me know if he gives you more shit over this.”

Ruby blinked a few times at Yang’s profanity, normally reigned a little tighter in her presence, but recovered quickly enough. “It’s fine, Yang,” Ruby assured her, offering her a weak smile. “He’s not some bully you need to beat up; he just doesn’t get it.”

There was a brief moment where Yang considered excusing herself to do laundry and give herself more time to think over the excuse Weiss had helped her come up with- after Yang promised that she would keep her in the loop and keep her words as close to the truth as possible. She still didn’t like how much truth was mixed in there or how many problems it could cause, but she would trust Weiss’s judgment on this. It wasn’t like she had a plan- not her department.

Blake didn’t let her think on it too long, shifting gears from Jaune’s issues to Yang’s sudden departure. “Now that that’s out of the way,” she said, slow and deliberate, “we still need to know why you took off like that.” The look on Blake’s face made her chest hurt as she spoke. “There is nothing you need to hide from us, nothing that could make us want you to leave. Everyone has reminded me of that before, but no one more than you.” She stopped shortly, biting her lower lip.

“Please,” Ruby added, earlier turmoil suddenly dismissed for wide-eyed concern, “don’t leave us out of this. You’re not alone, Yang.”

Those eyes will be the death of me, she thought.

Yang rubbed one hand over her face, not sure whether she was trying to hide it or wipe away whatever emotion that was beginning to show. “I know, I know,” she mumbled through her desperate motions. “I’m just really not proud of this.”

“Yang,” Weiss said pleadingly.

She didn’t have to look over to know exactly what Weiss was begging of her.

But, in her opinion, this was one of those secrets that would have to die with her. And Sable, Qrow, Winter, Weiss and whatever therapist she met with. Maybe Raven as well. Yang breathed out sharply, the noise almost resembling a reluctant laugh. She didn’t realize the list had gotten so long in such a short amount of time. So much for self control.

Gaze fixed firmly on the table, she spoke a piece of the truth. “I realized that I’m in love with Blake. And I don’t know how to deal with that.” She glanced up to meet Ruby’s eyes, currently wide with shock. “I never want to hurt either of you, so I left before I could do or say something I might regret.”

Beside her, Weiss sighed quietly- likely beneath the others’ notice, at the moment- and then gave Yang’s hand a sharp squeeze: frustration mixed with understanding.

Yang felt the urge to do something nice for her after this, assuming she survived.

“I know you wouldn’t have,” Ruby said softly, tension slowly draining from her shoulders. “I trust you, Yang. And I really wish you had thought better of yourself than that.”

“I have poor impulse control,” she muttered lamely, averting her eyes once again.

Ruby pouted slightly. “Can’t argue with that.”

Yang flinched. It didn’t cross any lines and she kind of had it coming, but it still stung.

“You should have stayed and talked with us,” Ruby tacked on, possibly realizing how that had sounded. “Because… if you want to date Blake- and Blake feels the same- I won’t mind.”

Yang extracted her hand from Weiss’s to press both hands against her face this time. This was not remotely what she had been hoping to hear. Of course, she didn’t really know what she had been hoping for. She just knew that this wasn’t it.

Slowly, Blake added, “I… think I would like that.” There was tenuous happiness in her tone.

This, she decided, is gonna suck.

Her hands slammed down against the table, making the others jump in their seats. “Absolutely not.”

Ruby gawked at her, while Blake looked concerned. She could practically feel Weiss’s judgmental stare boring into the left side of her head.

“Do you understand what you’re saying?” she asked incredulously, both hands leaving the table to flail in Ruby’s direction.

Ruby crossed her arms and scowled defensively. “Of course I do! Blake and I have already had this discussion and we know what we’re comfortable with. I didn’t say that to give you false hope.”

Yang brought her hands down slowly this time, clenching them into tight fists. “I know you didn’t mean anything by it, Ruby, but you have to think about this: you want to share your girlfriend with your _sister_. It doesn’t work like that.”

“I mean, we already share a house, a team, friends and a bed,” Ruby reminded her, one shoulder coming up slightly. Her wary posture remained despite the awkward shrug.

“Ruby, that’s very different,” Yang replied, sounding every bit as strained as she felt. “Do you really think you’d be okay with kissing someone who just kissed me? Or seeing me walk out of Blake’s room at night? Or trying to plan dates around each other?”

“ _Yes_ ,” Ruby snapped back, not a second of hesitation. “I’d be just fine with it! Because you would be happy, and Blake would be happy and that would be good enough for me. No, it would be great,” she corrected herself. “I’d be ecstatic! Two of the people I love most would be making each other happy and I think that’s perfect, Yang.” Her conclusion was rushed and breathless, like she’d had to force them all out in that instant, in case they disappeared on her.

‘I love you so much.’ The words sat uselessly in Yang’s throat until she cleared it. After a long pause, she replied, far more subdued than before.

“Okay, Ruby. I’m glad you care that much about us,” she said softly. “And I’m sorry that I acted like you didn’t know what you were offering.”

Blake and Weiss, who had been watching them go back and forth so intently, both eased a bit.

Ruby began smiling, while her own heart sank.

“But… _I’m_ _not_ okay with it,” she managed. It felt like she’d dragged the words out of herself, kicking and screaming and begging her to just say yes, to take what she could get and be happy. If she had Blake, though, she couldn’t not think of Ruby. It would drive her mad and she knew it- every smile, every touch, every kiss would be worse than just knowing how she felt and how wrong it was.

Because then she would be the slightest bit closer to Ruby, the possibility to taste her kiss of Blake’s lips or touch the same skin Ruby was intimately familiar with.

She was making the right decision, in the long term. But for now…

“I’m sorry,” she whispered, steeling herself against Blake’s look of embarrassment and the hint of tears welling up in Ruby’s eyes. “I’m not doing this for your sake; it’s all me. I wouldn’t be comfortable with this and… I don’t want to do it because I’d just let you both down. The idea of kissing the same person as my sister-” is too close to perfect, “just makes me uncomfortable.

“I’m glad, Blake,” she added gently, “that you would give me the chance, but you have Ruby. She has you. What you have is wonderful. And, in time, I think I’ll be happy for you both- and whoever else you two end up seeing.” Her throat and heart ached at the words, but she couldn’t find the tears to cry over it.

Neither of the women in question responded, Ruby appearing utterly despondent and Blake having a hard time looking her in the eye.

Weiss picked up the conversation, brows furrowed just slightly. “You are staying, though? You’re not going to run off _again_?” That earlier anger was present, laced into the bite of her words. Yang couldn’t figure out exactly what brought it back, but she guessed it was the act turning down the offer. It might have been how she had done it, but she would put money on the fact that Weiss wasn’t pleased she did it at all.

“Yes, I’m staying,” she confirmed, keeping her voice soft. “I’m still sorry I left like that but… well, the talk we’re having isn’t a lot of fun and I was less ready for it then.”

Ruby made a weak half-laughing noise. “I wish we were ready for it,” she murmured. Silver eyes watched her from under dark lashes, a bead or two of liquid clinging to them.

“Me too.”

~

The house was mostly silent, save for the faint sound of the washing machine downstairs cleaning Yang’s clothes. Blake had heard the front door close and nothing else. So, coupled with the fact that she couldn’t hear Weiss shuffling around papers in her office, she guessed that either Yang or Weiss were outside. Maybe both of them. The two had been giving each other weird looks since they arrived.

A quiet, wet sound from Ruby added to the dim noise, though her head never rose from Blake’s chest and Ruby’s weight never shifted from where she lay atop of Blake.

“I didn’t think it would bother you this much,” Blake murmured as she carded her fingers through Ruby’s hair. Something small and bitter grumbled at Ruby not being the one turned down, but she banished the intrusive thought. It was true that Yang’s refusal stung, but it didn’t hurt nearly as much as Ruby’s tears, currently collecting on Blake’s sweater. She had been prepared to never date Yang or Weiss, but not for this.

Ruby sniffled quietly. There was a pause as she regained her breath. “Me neither,” she admitted, the words muffled by damp fabric.

Blake hummed softly, slowing her movements just a bit. “I was ready for this. I’ve been preparing for it for a long time, even if it didn’t happen the way I was expecting.”

“I just want you two to be hap-p-py.” Her breathing hitched in the middle of the word, making her stutter it the rest of the way through.

“And we will be- Yang will be,” Blake corrected. “I already am.” She lifted her head just enough to kiss Ruby’s hair.

The words seemed to appease Ruby for a bit, letting her breaths even out and giving her the chance to wipe at tear tracks. The movement was short-lived, Ruby settling back into her place.

Ruby’s weight was grounding, a solid counter part to her racing mind. Sure, Ruby’s heartbeat was always a little faster than the average human’s and her hair tickled Blake’s nose, but it was a mere nitpick in the face of Blake’s comfort. The gentle rise and fall of her chest was soothing, in its rhythmic little way and the single beam of light, peeking through her blackout curtains, lit Ruby’s lean form and added to the atmosphere.

It was funny, Blake thought, that all of them had managed to grow but the youngest.

Blake managed an inch, but stopped short at twenty, Weiss gaining double that at eighteen, while Yang topped out at just short of six feet, towering over all of them. Ruby hadn’t gained a fraction of an inch since the day they met, something Yang held over her head (pun intended and used several times) for so long that it had lost all humor, even to Yang herself.

Though Blake would never say it, for more than one reason, she rather liked that Ruby had to lean up to kiss her and fit so neatly on top of her.

“I’m still sorry,” Ruby mumbled after a moment.

“You have nothing to be sorry for,” she replied. “No matter what happened, I was only going to be with one of you. If I dated Yang first, she would break it off for us to be together or I would have to pretend to get over you so that she wouldn’t be so freaked out. This is where we are now, and I wouldn’t leave you to be with Yang.”

Ruby made a little grumbling noise, but grew quiet as she gathered her thoughts.

Blake reveled in the stillness.

Even after months of having her own private space, there was something about it that never failed to put her at ease. She’d never had a room that was just hers, or a permanent spot for the books she picked up, or furniture that she got to pick. There was never a time when she helped someone assemble bookshelves or a desk that would be hers before she moved in with her team.

Now that it was long behind them, she still laughed at how long the four of them glanced between the instructions, the tools and the materials, pointing and mumbling in confusion. It took the group maybe two hours, several caffeinated drinks and a call to Taiyang to put everything together. Of course, there were still nicks in the wood where Yang mishandled screws; to this day, she claimed it added character.

Blake didn’t know what kind of character a desk could have, but she appreciated a tangible reminder of that day.

From her chest, Ruby let out a little sigh and said what she had been piecing together. “Maybe if I’d been more careful about it, let you two do more talking, it wouldn’t be this way, though.”

The petting stopped as Blake settled her arms comfortably around Ruby. “Maybe, maybe not. I guess we’ll never know. And I’m okay with that.” Okay was something of a work in progress, because damn, she’d never faced this type of rejection before. At least she felt somewhat vindicated in her choice of never addressing her feelings for Weiss.

“You shouldn’t have to be. I know I’m not.”

Blake glanced down, brows furrowing. “What do you mean by that?”

“I guess… there was nothing she said that sounded bad to me: kissing the same person, planning dates, leaving rooms. Actually, I thought that maybe it would be nice if we didn’t have to step around each other.” Ruby shuddered. “Logically, I know that it’s not okay, but… the idea of waking up next to both of you sounds really,” her voice cracked, “ _really_ nice.”

For a second, Blake searched herself for a reaction. There was no concern or revulsion, as perhaps she should feel. A hint of surprise, sure, but mostly there was empathy.

Blake squeezed her tightly. “It is okay. There’s nothing wrong. You’re both adults with no power over each other and you aren’t going to hurt her if you can help it. Forget what Jaune said; this isn’t what he’d thinking. And thank you, Ruby.”

“For what?” Ruby wasn’t looking up at her and that shudder had turned into little quivers.

“I’m glad you trusted me with this.”

“How could I not? You never hid what you felt for Weiss and Yang, even when you thought I wouldn’t want to be with you because of it. You supported me when Jaune didn’t understand and you let me know that you were on my side no matter what I felt.”

Everything still hurt, Weiss was out of reach and Yang out of the question, but at least she had Ruby.

And, in turn, Ruby had her, no matter what.

~

“So… I shot a message to Dr. Ward,” Yang started hesitantly.

Weiss looked up from her knees, one leaning against Yang’s to glance at her friend. “That’s good?”

“Why’d you say it like that?”

“Like what?”

“Like it’s a question!” Yang snapped.

A delicate eyebrow went up. “Don’t raise your voice at me.”

Yang sighed, tilting her head back until it rested against the front door. “Why are you mad at me?” She cut in before Weiss could start. “And don’t answer me with a question- you know I hate that. Nearly decked Raven for it once.” The look on her face was briefly wistful, then abruptly irritated.

“I’m not mad.”

Yang gave her a look.

“Fine, I’m a little frustrated, but it’s just because I’m worried about you! I know you have no intention of-” she cleared her throat, the words a little difficult, “pursuing your feelings for Ruby. But do you really have to make yourself miserable?”

There was a soft thud as Yang bounced her head against the door, before she turned to peer down at Weiss. “Look, I know this is a stretch for you, considering you’re completely gay and your sister is completely straight, but can you, for a second, imagine trying to share a girlfriend with Winter?”

Weiss cringed at the thought. There were so many things wrong with that mental image and, in her opinion, Winter’s taste in men was horrible, only compounding the problem. But that was beside the point. “I can appreciate the analogy, but I’m not-” another rough throat clearing, “ah, _infatuated with_ Winter.” She shuddered a bit at the idea, something that made Yang wince.

“I can’t let myself get that close to her,” Yang mumbled. “Too much temptation.” She stopped short, looking like she wanted to say more.

Weiss sighed softly. It made sense, but she still hated it. She wished that she was already in love with Yang, able to give her the affection she needed. They had time though, and Weiss had every intention of taking it. If they jumped into a relationship now, there would be a lot of concern from Blake and Ruby- not to mention her own uncertainty with the whole situation.

Yang being in love with Blake didn’t surprise her for a second. And, honestly, in the instance that Weiss thought it was just the two of them, she hadn’t minded it; if she had to share with someone, Blake was definitely among her first choices. However, while she would never say it to Yang (not directly), Yang’s feelings for Ruby had… rather discomfited her. There was an initial feeling of aversion, pushed aside by Yang’s clear distraught, but from there she could only feel sympathy.

Every second of hesitation was followed by an internal reminder that Yang didn’t ask for this, that Ruby was an adult, and their lives had never been normal, even for Huntresses.

Gently, Weiss rested her head on Yang’s shoulder. “I understand,” she murmured, “more or less. I just hate seeing you- any of you- hurt.”

“Life goes on. I’ll get over this, Dr. Ward will help, and I’ve still got you.”

“You still have Blake and Ruby, you know. They still love you.”

Yang sighed. “Not the way I want.”

There was a pause as Weiss thought about their conversation at the café. “I wish it could be like that: a world where you’ve got us all and Blake and Ruby still have each other.” In a world where no one cared, she wouldn’t either, even if only in the back of her mind. Another pause and she murmured, “Sorry, for making you think about it.”

“It’s…” Yang hesitate, sighed again and decided, “fine. A nice thought for when everything sucks. That’ll be enough, for now.”

“For now,” Weiss agreed. “And then, after you’ve taken some time, we’ll see about us.”

“I should’ve kissed you when I had the chance,” Yang muttered.

Weiss’s face grew warm. “Trust me, you still have the chance- in the future.”

“I like the sound of that.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Also, that fucking finale. My heart wasn't ready. Anyone else excited for the soundtrack? Honestly, I could listen to Jeff and Casey all day.
> 
> My writing will have to get me through the hiatus, because I am seriously addicted to these characters, canon and fanon wise.


	26. Chapter 26

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally! Sorry for the wait, folks, and happy Valentines day, for those that care.
> 
> The chapter is a little OC heavy, but I'm happy with how it turned out. There should be less in the next one, if any at all.

“Yang, I’m glad you’re back,” Dr. Ward murmured as Yang slipped out of her winter coat and tossed it haphazardly across the arm of the couch. “I was afraid you would skip the appointment after how the last session ended.” His eyes, faded blue with smile lines at the corners, seemed to search her.

Yang plopped down on a cushion with her head tilted back so that she was staring up at the ceiling. She found herself unable to look at him directly for more than a few seconds at a time. “Yeah, well, who else could I pay to listen to my problems?”

In spite of her current discomfort, she really liked his office. It was cozy, in a clean, slightly lived in way. His desk was slightly cluttered in the same way the Weiss kept hers: everything where she, but no one else, could find it. The books kept on his single shelf were worn and the titles unintimidating. Painting of the ocean and ships adorned walls painted in warm colors; in the back of her mind, Yang remembered that the biography on his website claimed he was from one of the isles north of Vacuo. Perhaps they reminded him of home.

Ward sighed softly. “Quite a few people, actually. Though I imagine you know several who would do it for free. How are you housemates, by the way?”

“Fine,” she replied, playing with a lock of hair. She twisted it gently between her thumb and forefinger, careful not to matt it. “Everyone’s out on a hunting job with some of Blake’s HFA friends.” Yang didn’t have to look up to know that he was raising his eyebrows; it was every bit as audible from him as it was from Weiss.

“I’m surprised you let them go without you.”

She shrugged, gently smoothing her hair back to normal. “Someone has to look after Ajax- that’s Weiss’s ex-girlfriend’s puppy. I dropped him with Sable for the session, so he wouldn’t get lonely. Now that I think about it, I’ll probably have to explain to Olive why she can’t have her dog back.”

“And who is Sable?” he asked, leaning back into his chair. “You haven’t mentioned them before.”

“They’re the mailperson. They made fast friends with Ruby when we first moved in and now they’re just a regular fixture in our lives. They’re also the first person to figure out-” Yang paused, “okay, second person to figure out my feelings for Ruby. Really nice, held me through an anxiety attack and everything,” she added drily.

Now she looked at Ward, who seemed to be contemplating which statement to unpack first as he threaded a weathered hand through graying brown hair. He didn’t seem old enough to be going gray, maybe a few years younger than Qrow, but he had the air of a man who’d seen some shit. The way Weiss was devouring his memoir seemed to reinforce the idea that he, at least, had an interesting life.

His mind apparently made up, he asked, “Who was the first person?”

“Raven.”

Ward’s brows furrowed. “Your mother?”

“Yes, the one that abandoned me and let everyone who loved her think she was dead.” She offered him a mockery of a smile.

“I remembered that part,” he replied, sounding just a little distant. “Your mother?” he repeated.

Yang made a gesture meant to convey a feeling of ‘whatever’. “I told you: my life is weird.”

“A rather large number of my patients say that,” Ward told her, leaning forward in his seat as if to address her more properly. “However, it is only strange in comparison to their civilian friends and family, not to other hunters. The nightmares, the intense devotion to their teammates or academy friends, the rush of adrenaline and the sense of hopelessness and insecurity, those are all common. Those are things I regularly witnessed in my own friends and family.

“Even being in love with one’s partner or other allies, is rather common. It’s less common to be in love with all or multiple of them, but it has happened before. The situation you are in, however… is new to me.” He held her gaze as he concluded, “And, despite everything your life has put you up against, you seem to be mentally healthy and well adapted young woman.”

Yang snorted. “I’m the sanest lunatic you’ve ever met: Whoop-de-fucking-do.”

Ward sighed loudly. “That is not remotely what I meant.”

“I know.”

“So,” he laced his fingers together and place his hands in his lap, “shall we talk about how your mother found out?”

“Raven… well, I told you what she’s like and how Weiss thinks she might be a sociopath or low empathy or whatever. Point is, she’s really perceptive and analytical. She probably had no problem removing herself from the situation enough to put two and two together. Honestly, I’m just glad that she doesn’t know that I know.”

Ward made a sort of ‘go on’ gesture, though it felt more like an offer than a request.

“Well, she confronted my uncle and dad about it,” and his eyebrows were back up, “and when I told my uncle,” he blinked a few times, “he let it slip that Raven had pulled them aside.” Once that was said, Yang had to laugh, somewhat bitterly. “Yeah, I know. She should probably be in here getting help too.”

“Perhaps… we should start from the beginning?” He had retrieved his glasses from his desk without looking away from her and was already reaching for a notepad.

During her first session, she’d been a little wary of someone writing down her problems, but his writing was absolute chicken scratch. More than likely, he was the only one who could read it.

Yang took a breath and began, “I realized that I was in love with Ruby two years ago.”

The dam broken, she let the words pour out: every little struggle and fear and anxiety. The moments where she’d had to look away or pull back, how hard it had been to pretend and deny exactly what she felt, how often she beat herself up and forced herself to ignore it so that Ruby could have the older sister she deserved. She relayed her conversation with Sable, from entry to their house to breaking down in their grasp and the sudden departure from team RWBY’s home.

Yang spoke of the way Qrow had let her cry and how earnestly Winter had consoled her, in her own distant and awkward way. She admitted to the lies of omittance she told the rest of her team while Weiss aided in keeping her secrets and confessed to her fears of Weiss backing off because of Yang’s love for all of them.

Whereas telling Sable had been like leaping off a cliff, explaining to Dr. Ward was more akin to digging up a grave. Her words were fumbled and difficult, full of the effort of drawing out her worst thoughts and memories.

When the clock chimed on the hour, Yang was gently dabbing away her tears and Ward looked on with an expression of open compassion, occasionally rubbing at his face like he might be fighting back his own tears born of sympathy.

“I guess that’s my time,” Yang muttered as she tossed some tissues into the wastebasket Ward had nudged over to her mid-monologue.

Ward turned to frown at the clock, shifting his glasses down his nose as he did. “I suppose so,” he agreed, though he looked less than enthused by the fact. He paused to scribble something on his pad once more and then tore off a piece, which he offered to Yang. It was surprisingly legible. “This is my scroll number and personal e-mail. If you feel the need to talk before our next meeting, please do- free of charge.”

Yang took it gingerly, every bit as hesitant as she’d been with the business card Jaune had ‘thrown at’ Ruby. “I… it’s okay, I know you have other things to do.”

He exhaled deeply. “Unless I’m with a patient, whatever I’m doing at the time can wait.”

She bit her lip.

“Please, believe that it’s no trouble.”

Slowly, she tucked it into her pocket. “Okay. Um, thanks.”

“You are very welcome,” he said softly. “Sini will help you set up your next appointment. Take care, Yang.”

~

It was strange, having three unfamiliar combatants on her side, all of which had over a decade’s experience on her. Especially when they followed her orders- she meant them to be suggestions, really, but they listened when she spoke, just as she did when Miss Corvali made her own calls. There was some fumbling on the occasion that they both assessed a situation differently, each team responding to their own leader and getting in the way of the other three.

More often than not, it felt like two groups of three rather than one group of six, but they got along well enough. And Blake seemed happy to be working with someone she thought so highly of. Weiss appeared equally content as she bantered with Miss Firebird.

She felt uncomfortable referring to them by their first names- she still called all of her former teachers ‘professor’- or doctor, in one case. As if sensing that, the third woman had merely introduced herself by her first name and not deigned to tell them much else, her black eyes gleaming with mischief, much as they did now.

Ruby couldn’t help matching her grin as Sylph ripped one of the sharpened ends of her bow from the now-fading beowolf’s skull. “On your left, Crazy,” the Faunus called, even as she turned hard on her heel, knocking and loosing an arrow in an instant.

Without much thought, Crescent Rose met tainted flesh and cut clean through another beowolf’s arm. The cut was followed by an angry yip, ended immediately by a round to its throat.

She left the momentum throw her back, sending her spiraling through the air, down on a previously approaching Grimm that must have thought itself rather stealthy. Even through the din of gunfire, shouts and metal on Grimm flesh, Ruby knew when something was advancing on her; she had too many years of practice to not know- though perhaps half of it was her friends and family attempting to sneak up on her.

A yank and another shot, carefully leveled at one of Weiss’s opponents, took the beowolf’s head off cleanly. The sounds and sensations were thrilling.

Her every movement and even her breathing was calculated, but entirely subconscious. Unlike her first few years, everything was now second nature, her mind simultaneously in over drive and acting on instinct. There was an odd form of trust in her actions, letting her body work, each thought taking affect the instant it had been brought into being, not a second left to deliberation.

Weiss falling into step beside her and hopping onto one of her glyphs happened without consideration, giving her the freedom to spin as she soared, catching heads and limbs in Crescent Rose’s deadly grasp.

Blake neatly sidestepped Ruby as she landed, bolting forward to take some graceful swipes at one of the beowolves that had dodged Ruby’s swings. One fell, then two and then Ruby was back on them. She didn’t have to say a word for them to begin executing their Ladybug attack plan, easily wiping out those that remained.

Once they found their footing, they followed Miss Corvali and Firebird’s gazes to Sylph, who seemed to be concentrating.

“Nothing near,” the raccoon Faunus announced, grinning even as she slumped against a tree. Unlike her two friends, she didn’t seem to be panting. “Neat trick, by the way,” she added, nodding in Ruby’s direction. “You three work smoothly together.”

Ruby felt her earlier grin rising. “You guys did too.”

Miss Corvali snorted. “Yeah,” she panted, “right. Dahlia and I are out of practice.”

“Nonsense,” Weiss cut in, reaching back to tighten her ponytail. “There are some things that you never unlearn. Like riding a bike.”

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Blake shift uncomfortably and was by her side immediately. There were no visible signs of pain- things she’d learned to identify in all of them early in their friendship- so Ruby guessed it was something else bothering her. So, Ruby did what she always did and gave her a light nudge.

Blake glanced over, a touch of red to her cheeks. “Yeah?” Her ears had gone back, just a bit, but that was enough.

“Just checking on you,” Ruby demurred lightly, leaning up to peck her on the cheek. She could pester Blake about this later.

The blush increased as three of the others let out a teasing ‘aww’.

Weiss just sighed. “Don’t encourage them; as happy as I am for them, I already see it every day.”

“Then quit hanging out with them,” Miss Firebird offered. “I’ve had to do that a few times.” She shot Sylph a look, which only earned a cheeky smirk.

“Hard to do when you live them,” Weiss shot back.

Slow, sly grins formed and Corvali let out an approving, “ _Way to go_ , Belladonna.”

“Not- not like that,” Blake sputtered out. “Our team _just_ lives together.”

Ruby bit back an impulsive, ‘sadly’. The last thing she needed was to make this weird.

The eldest three glanced between each other. “That’s,” Firebird hedge out.

“A little odd,” Sylph finished, though she didn’t seem too bothered.

“You moved in with your partner after school,” Corvali prodded her.

“Who was also my girlfriend at the time,” Sylph reminded her.

More glances between them, though Sylph’s were a bit on the concerned side.

“At the time?”

And suddenly Sylph had her bow slung across her back. “We should find a place to make camp. And you might want to stretch out your left shoulder, Glitter, you were a little weak on that side.”

Ruby saw Corvali hesitantly shift the shoulder in question and then heard her hiss. “When did she have the time to notice that?” she mumbled, mostly to herself.

Blake, Weiss and Ruby went about sharing their own looks and Weiss raised one shoulder in question. The other two nodded and Weiss trotted after Sylph falling into place beside her, while she and Blake walked with the other huntresses, Weiss and Sylph maybe ten paces ahead.

She and Blake didn’t hold hands, both preferring to leave their hands free in case they needed to grab their weapons. It was a simple and unspoken agreement that left them brushing shoulders, but little else. For Ruby, the proximity was enough.

“Sorry for the team drama,” Corvali said apologetically, stretching her shoulder as Sylph had suggested. “I’m sure you know that you can’t be this close to a group of people without there being hitches and sore spots here and there.”

“We know,” Ruby confirmed, thinking back to the group conversation three weeks ago.

Her heart still ached in memory of Yang’s refusal of Blake- and her inadvertent refusal of Ruby. It was perfectly innocent and well-intentioned, but it still stung. Not to mention that Yang had been acting weird ever since. Logic chalked it up to the inherent awkward that came with refusing someone who lived with you, but it felt like something else. Most likely because of her own stake in it, but she held her belief that something was going on with Yang.

A brief thought of, ‘what if Yang knew that she had slightly less than platonic feelings for her’ flashed through Ruby’s mind. Her heartrate kicked up a bit, but she tamped it back down; there was no way that Yang knew. Blake would never tell her and there was no way could have overheard.

“All relationships are different,” Firebird said, nodding to Ruby and Blake, “but in-team relationships can be something of a shitshow, in our experience.” She elbowed Corvali lightly.

“That wasn’t an ‘our relationship is already hanging from a thread’ issue, though. That was me not recognizing that I was straight, and no level of trust would change that,” Corvali corrected her.

Firebird tossed an arm over her shoulder. “Probably for the best, Sapphire. I’d hate to not have Blaise and Umber in my life.”

“And I’d hate to be stuck with you, Lia,” Corvali deadpanned.

The two bickered more quietly as they walked, giving light shoves and playful elbows to the side, like a slightly more physical Weiss might with Yang. It was kind of nice, pretending that things were almost normal. The only detractor being the knowledge that Yang would be going to therapy right about now, and the way Sylph’s tail had coiled nervously around one leg, like she’d seen Sun do before.

Did Yang’s feelings for Blake really necessitate her going to therapy? Again, Ruby considered the likelihood that something else was up- which she had discussed with Blake. She had seemed to understand where Ruby was coming from despite having no theories of her own as to why Yang was so determined to see a therapist.

According to Yang, the first session had gone pretty well. She said that Ward was pretty cool and, though he had never been a Huntsman himself due to an abnormally low aura, he really got the ins and outs of hunting. She didn’t know how the second went, but Yang didn’t come home until three hours after her appointment ended. Yang, rather than discussing how it went, deflected with some commentary on what she had done post-appointment.

She wondered if Yang would even go to this session, a concern that Blake had echoed. Weiss brushed them both off, claiming that she wouldn’t dare skip. The look on her face held an implied threat that Yang likely knew the full extent of.

“Up here looks good,” Sylph called back, pulling Ruby out of her contemplations.

Her worries about Yang could wait. Right now, there were beowolves to kill, people to protect and a wi-fi bill to pay for.

~

It was a little surreal, seeing Sable’s tail wag almost in time with Ajax’s. Both bore wide grins as Sable held out a tennis ball, just before the puppy’s nose. His muzzle would slowly inch toward the toy, only to jerk back as Sable brought their arm back, ready to throw it. Ajax was suddenly racing in circles, his mostly-missing foreleg no obstacle in his eagerness to play.

That part of the game went on two or three more times, before Sable whipped their arm back in earnest. “Go get it,” they called, and Ajax was off even before they threw it.

He got maybe half way across the dog park before Sable tossed it for him. His flying leap, narrow miss and prompt faceplant had Sable in stitches.

In spite of everything, Yang found herself smiling as she approached.

Ajax recovered, retrieved the ball and was on his way back in record time, lips flapping slightly in the wind as he ran.

“Having fun, you two?” Yang asked.

Sable jumped, hand going to their heart. “Yang! Quit doing that!”

Yang chuckled at their expense. “I was right here,” she told them, “the whole time. Not my fault you were so interested in playing fetch.”

Karma kicked in as Ajax abandoned play time to greet Yang, adjusting his trajectory enough to bowl right into her legs, sending them both down in the wet grass. As far as a place to land went, Yang had fallen in worse areas, but that didn’t help the way her head bounced off the ground and a heavy paw, misplaced in their mutual scrambling, knocked the air from her lungs.

“Oof,” she grunted. “Damnit dog.”

Sable let out a very unattractive, snorting laugh. “Looks like someone missed you,” they managed through their snickering.

“He has good taste,” is what Yang meant to say. What actually came out was more akin to a wheezing cough.

Sensing that he had done something wrong, Ajax darted behind Sable, his large, fluffy form not remotely hidden behind the mailperson’s scrawny frame. The ball remained firmly in his mouth and big, chocolate eyes searched her for anger.

Yang let out a sigh, remaining where she was on the ground for a moment. It was a good thing he was so cute. “Thanks for helping me up,” she deadpanned, “you’re a real pal, Sable.”

Laughter finally petering out, they offered her a hand. “It’s laugh or cry, Yang, and if I didn’t laugh as often as I do, I’d be a miserable person.”

She took their hand, nearly toppling them over. “As opposed to just an awful person?”

Their only response was to help dust some of the grass off of her. “So, how’s the therapist?”

Ajax, no longer fearing retaliation for his clumsiness, butted his head against Yang’s leg for attention, even as his tail thumped Sable on the legs.

“Ward’s pretty cool,” she decided, reaching down to rub Ajax behind the ears. He let the ball go and Yang took that as a win. “Hey, do I get an award or something if I make my therapist get a therapist?”

“If that award you’re looking for is a pity party, then yes,” they told her. They gave her jeans another look-over and decided they were satisfied, shoving their hands in their hoodie’s front pockets. “Want to talk about it?”

“Not really, no.”

Sable shrugged. “Okay. Want to get ice cream?”

Yang made a face. “It’s December, Sable.”

“Don’t be such a Weiss,” they teased, earning a mildly affronted noise. “Yes or no?”

“…yes.”

~

The camp was long settled for the night. Sylph, Ruby and Dahlia slept comfortably as Sapphire walked the perimeter of the camp. Blake and Weiss sat off to the side, far enough away that their words wouldn’t bother anyone around the now dimming campfire.

Weiss didn’t recall one requesting the other’s presence or making any deliberate moves. Their eyes had merely met, Blake had started for the edge of the clearing and Weiss had followed without much thought.

“You seem distracted,” Blake murmured, settling against an ancient oak. One hand rested against the bark, her fingers tracing the ridges. “What did Sylph say to you?”

“Honestly? Nothing important,” Weiss replied. Her first instinct was to lean against the same tree as Blake, but decided against it, facing her instead. “She started asking me about Atlas and just kept me going. I think she was uncomfortable talking to me about it, but I don’t think Dahlia and Sapphire were going to say anything.”

Blake nodded, as if Weiss’s words had confirmed something. “Not all teams can be like ours.”

“I know,” she said, though it felt like she was talking to herself.

Weiss waited. She felt the mild urge to fidget and turned that need for movement into something useful, giving her arms and legs a few light stretches, letting joints pop and muscles protest. The motions were simple and efficient, getting the most out of her body in the instances that she moved; there was as much release in this as there was in letting her body rest.

She looked back to her friend.

Blake wasn’t looking at her, golden eyes intent on the forest floor.

So, Weiss left her be a little longer, closing her eyes to soak in the night.

A light breeze wafted over her skin, raising goosebumps. It was mild compared to the chill of Atlas. She missed the biting cold some days, but those feelings grew further away the longer she was in Vale.

Internally, she wondered when she had stopped thinking of Atlas as home, as somewhere to return to, rather than a place to visit. Had it been as long ago as her first years at Beacon? Or was it more recent, when she had gotten an apartment in Vale?

Maybe it was when she moved in with her teammates. That answer felt right- somewhat.

There was the faintest sound of shifting weight and Weiss’s eyes reopened on Blake.

“Ruby and I have been talking…” she said slowly, only to pause and reconsider her words once more. “Ever since you picked Yang up-” she stopped again.

Weiss gave her an understanding nod.

“Do you know what’s going on with Yang?” Blake asked, at last.

“Yes,” Weiss answered immediately.

They stared at each other for a while, Blake biting her lip and Weiss attempting to keep her face neutral. She didn’t know if it was working, because Blake revealed nothing with her own body language.

After a second, Blake sighed. “…she’s okay, right?”

Weiss’s heart sunk. “Not right now,” she admitted, stepping a bit closer to rest a light hand on Blake’s upper arm. “But I think she will be. She’s trying to get there.”

Blake swallowed audibly and leaned just slightly into Weiss’s touch. “Is there anything I can do?”

“Be patient,” Weiss told her. “And don’t let her forget that we love her.”

“ _How_ could she forget?” The question come out harsh, like Blake was trying not to raise her voice.

“It’s Yang,” she offered feebly. “She’s always held herself to a higher standard than anyone else.”

Blake sighed. “Higher than anyone could live up to.”

“Be patient with her,” Weiss repeated and drew Blake into a hug. The Faunus went limp in her grasp, chin sinking down onto Weiss’s shoulder.

There was always some respite in her friends’ arms, even when both parties felt they needed the other.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm posting another work today, the CEO Weiss story. It has a ship, a tentative name and an outline. It shouldn't detract from this story at all, since I actually have a plan for it and this is entirely spontaneous.
> 
> Let me know what you think of my combat scene; normally I like how I write action, but it's hard to truly capture RWBY's imagery.


	27. Chapter 27

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this one took so long (I say that a lot)! And remember to get after me for spelling/grammar errors. Neither my proofreading nor spellcheck seem to help me.
> 
> Also, can I just say: Holy fucking shit, what has this fic become? 80k words and 400 kudos because I decided there wasn't enough pollination in the fandom. You guys are the best :)

“You know, I never understood why people think snow is romantic,” Ruby said meditatively, staring out at the falling powder. “Your fingers and toes get cold and you’re so wrapped up in clothes that it’s hard to hug or kiss someone.” She rubbed her hands together at the mere thought.

“And outdoor sex is a complete no go,” Yang put in, tugging on gloves with actual fingers for once.

“ _Yang_ ,” three voices groaned in unison, each one varying slightly in terms of exasperation and disgust.

The brawler raised her empty palms, as if she was any less dangerous unarmed. “Just saying.” She refused any sort of hat, but she _had_ wrapped an extra scarf around her neck. “You girls sure you don’t wanna help?”

Blake, bundled under two layers of blankets and wearing a turtleneck that covered her nose deigned to respond, “There is not a force on earth that could get me out there; it’s colder than a Schnee family reunion.”

“Hosted in the same place as a Faunus rights convention,” Ruby added, pulling back from the window and snuggling up next to Blake, who graciously shared her blankets and body heat.

“It’s not that cold, wimps,” Weiss scoffed as she stepped outside.

Yang was hard on her heels, grinning broadly. “Did you just make a joke, Ice Queen?” The door slammed behind her, but the other two could hear their muffled bickering.

Ruby tuned them out, sticking her face in Blake’s hair. “What’s on the agenda, other than not freezing?”

“I thought that was your job, oh fearless leader,” Blake replied lightly. She fidgeted a bit and pulled a book from under her pile. “I figured I would read.”

Ruby hummed cheerfully. “Could you read to me?”

“It’s just old poetry, Ruby, nothing riveting.” Not that Blake actually wanted to discourage her.

“I like just listening to you read,” Ruby murmured. “Your voice has- what’s the word? Prosody! The tone changes; you never drone or ramble.”

Blake flicked to her last page and read aloud, of departed loves and the affection the poetess had for these women. It wasn’t quite unpleasant to her ears, but some of the words felt out of place and the rhythm seemed off. Ruby said as much.

“It’s ancient,” Blake explained, tapping a finger on the title of the next poem, “translated from the old language of Southern Mistral, before the countries adopted a standard. Like Weiss’s name is from Old Mantle.”

“Oh,” Ruby whispered slowly. She didn’t speak up again, silently urging Blake to continue.

They would lay like that for another half hour, Ruby’s head on Blake’s shoulder, eyes on the book but not the actual words. She could hear Weiss shout something outside and Yang laughed loudly, something she hadn’t heard a whole lot of since Yang returned from Atlas. She curled up closer at the thought of the cold, idly wondering if they’d started a snowball fight.

There was a brief pause as Blake skimmed the next selection and then cleared her throat before beginning. The last few on love and loss hadn’t bothered Ruby, so why should one on death?

But by the time Blake had finished that poem, Ruby was fidgeting slightly. “Are you alright?” the Faunus asked, setting her book aside. She slipped her arm around the younger woman, pulling her closer, into their usual temple to temple snuggle.

“Do you ever think about dying?” Ruby breathed.

Blake started slightly at the question, leaning back to search Ruby with her eyes. Ruby looked pensive, not afraid or worried, just lost in thoughts that were miles and years away from where they sat. “Not often,” she answered slowly. “Not since... you know.”

Blake couldn’t see it, not directly, but she felt Ruby shift and knew that the scythe wielder was rubbing her burnt forearm. It hadn’t been bad, not nearly as bad as it could have been considering the grip Cinder had had on her arm, but over a year later and Ruby hated even thinking about them.

Cinder had used her well; they weren’t best friends or anything, but Cinder had put up a good mask, lulling Ruby into a sense of security. If they had been closer, perhaps Ruby wouldn’t have let herself see the cracks in her façade and been as prepared subsequent plunge into chaos, but she had. Blake hated that Ruby had a hard time trusting, even if it was for the best. She squeezed Ruby closer, with no resistance.

“Me neither,” Ruby admitted. “I thought about it a lot when I was little, after Mom died, even if I couldn’t really understand it. Sometimes I think that I still don’t.” Her hand found Blake’s under the covers and their fingers twined together. “We hear about people dying all the time- we’re Huntresses, after all- but it’s always weird to think about someone who’s always around suddenly not being around, you know?”

Blake’s thoughts drifted to Adam, long dead and buried- she visited his grave a few months ago on what would have been the birthday they made up for him as children. Of course, he hadn’t been the Adam she remembered when he passed, the one that looked after her and trained her and loved her. She had started thinking of him as ‘gone’ long before his time. “It is,” Blake whispered, hoping her voice didn’t crack too much.

And what more was there to say?

The poetry book long forgotten, they settled for holding onto each other. Ruby buried her face in Blake’s neck while Blake held Ruby in her arms, just enjoying the shared warmth and closeness. She thought to Weiss’s words a few months ago, about having someone you could trust with your life and how it felt to know that they trusted you with theirs. Her heart clenched a bit and she nuzzled the top of Ruby’s head. That was a burden that she wouldn’t trade for anything in the world, no matter how much it hurt some days.

~

“I am beyond done with you, Yang Xiao Long,” was the first thing out of Weiss’s mouth as she entered.

“Oh, come on,” Yang called, trailing after her much like when they had exited. “It was a little bit of snow, Ice Queen.” She meant the nickname affectionately, but the look Weiss shot over her shoulder promised that it had done her no favors and Yang quickly went on the defensive. “You nailed me in the face just two minutes ago!”

And now Weiss was undressing, shucking off her coat and tossing it to the coat rack like she criticized the others for doing. Her boots lay discarded on the tile and her outer sweater soon joined the coat. “I never put any _in_ your clothes,” she snapped, yanking her under shirt over her head to display a very damp back. She wadded the garment up and tossed it at Yang. “Put that in the dryer, you brute.” The heiress turned on her heel and stalked upstairs without a backwards glance.

“Still like the tattoo,” Yang called after her, eyes deliberately on the emblem on Weiss’s right shoulder blade, not that Weiss could tell.

The pair on the couch looked at her in disbelief. She was _really_ pushing her luck today.

Weiss’s only response was the slamming of her door.

The blonde glanced at her sister and her partner curled up on the couch and took note of their expressions. “I am so on her shit list for the next month,” Yang surmised, clutching the damp shirt between her fingers.

They nodded.

“Put that in the dryer,” Blake reiterated. “Make some coffee and maybe it’ll only last a week. Weiss in a bad mood is no fun for any of us.”

Yang grumbled as she did as she was told, as if it was more than a minor inconvenience.

The first thing Weiss did when she got downstairs, back in her usual white and pale blue attire, was wedge herself between Blake and Ruby, basking in their accumulated heat. The two shared a glimpse over her head but said nothing; she had to be pretty cold to initiate contact instead of just accepting offered touch.

Yang returned to the living room with a mug of coffee clutched in her hands. “I made a whole pot, Weiss,” she said. “And I fixed it just the way you like it.”

“Black, a drop of stevia?” Weiss inquired.

The blonde smirked. “Enough milk to coat the bottom and three drops.”

Weiss’s mouth twitched, and she took the mug without comment- which Yang took as a victory. She collapsed- lightly so as not to incite the Ice Queen’s wrath- beside Ruby, tugging the blanket out from underneath her and wiggling under the overstretched material, but there just wasn’t enough.

Ruby did a fair imitation of Weiss’s typical squeak of confusion/distress as Yang picked her up only to plunk her back down on her lap. One arm ended up holding Ruby to her while the other slipped over Weiss’s shoulder, the fingers curling around her biceps. There was a second in which Yang realized what she had done and how happily Ruby had settled into her lap, but she pulled her mind away from it- Weiss now, her issues later.

“I didn’t mean anything by it,” Yang said with forced ease. “Sorry.”

Weiss slumped up against the blonde. “I’ll forgive you because you made my coffee right and you’re ridiculously warm,” she muttered, tone somewhere between playful and petty.

“How did you know how she liked her coffee anyway?” Ruby asked, snuggling back against her sister. “Even I don’t know that.”

Yang shrugged, even as her stomach twisted slightly. You fucked up, she thought to herself. “I notice things: Weiss only drinks coffee black when she’s trying for an all-nighter, you and Blake never drink coffee. Blake likes herbal tea, chamomile or that ‘Well Rested’ mix with mint in it. You drink hot chocolate, always with milk, not water.”

“It tastes weird with water,” Ruby muttered.

 “It’s always good to know how to bribe us,” Blake said thoughtfully, “especially when you like pushing our buttons.”

She shrugged again. “If I don’t, who will? Everyone loves Ruby and no one would dare pick on you or Weiss, so I take it on myself to make sure you don’t take yourselves too seriously.”

Weiss elbowed her as much as she could, squished into Yang’s side. “And who does that for you?”

“Me,” Yang replied languidly. “I couldn’t take myself seriously if I tried and besides, you guys all know me better than that.” She squeezed Weiss against her side, earning a squeak. “There is no amount of money you could pay me to be serious on a regular basis.”

“You might die of boredom,” Blake said, mouth curling into a smirk.

“And that,” Yang said with an air of mock solemnity, “would be a grave situation.”

She was surrounded by tired groans. At least some things were still normal.

~

Ruby sprawled across Yang’s bed, now separated from her own. She had come home to their beds back in their original places, Yang claiming that she wanted a little more space to herself and was tired of rolling into the middle where there was a kind of dip. Not that it was ever a problem before, Ruby thought, more than a little bitterly; she was beginning to miss cuddling up at night, especially now that it was getting colder. She loved cuddling with Blake, sure, but this was different. She hated feeling so far from Yang, even in these little ways.

Yang setting her on her lap had been the most contact Ruby had gotten from her since she, Weiss and Blake had returned, actually. Maybe more than she had gotten since Yang returned from Atlas.

Was it her suggestion that they both date Blake? The idea had definitely made Yang uncomfortable. She wondered whether the mental image of kissing the same person- and indirectly, each other- had caused Yang to put some physical distance between them.

Whatever it was, Ruby hated it. Even more so with the revelation that _maybe_ she would be okay with having a less platonic relationship with Yang.

The idea itself was still weird, logically, but her body didn’t rebel at the thought. There was no disgust or physical discomfort, just the knowledge that it was socially incorrect, and that other people would definitely not be okay with it. For a few seconds at a time, she allowed herself to be angry with Jaune. None of this was his fault and his reaction was technically normal, but if her dad- _her and Yang’s dad_ \- could support her, he should be able to get over himself, in her opinion.

There was a moment of ‘oh, crap’ as Ruby realized that the Winter Solstice was coming up, and that meant family. No matter how much her dad supported her, she doubted that he’d be happy to have his suspicions confirmed and there was no way she could hide this from Qrow. Even drunk, he was more perceptive than most.

Ruby briefly pressed her face into Yang’s pillow. She didn’t know if it was to comfort herself or as an act of defiance against Yang’s newly-established distance, but she felt better either way.

She rolled off the bed and trotted her way downstairs, deciding that it would be best to have this conversation now and not two weeks from now, when the solstice was actually happening, and they may or may not be having guests.

The scene downstairs was a familiar and welcome one. Blake was still under her pile of blankets, practically a pair of black cat ears and gold eyes in a sea of fabric, looking on as Weiss and Yang bickered over something happening on the television. The two were close, shoulder to shoulder, much as they always seemed to be recently. Yang squinted at the screen in front of her, even as she made a comment that caused Weiss to give her a flick to the knee.

Blake caught her eye as she descended, and they shared a knowing look.

She had confirmed that Weiss did, in fact, know something that they didn’t, but also had no intention of telling them for Yang’s sake.

It only made Ruby worry more about their current situation.

“So,” she drawled, hands behind her back as she slunk over to the couch.

Yang blinked at the sight of her. “Ruby,” she said, in a tone that Ruby decidedly _did not_ like, “I thought you were going to take a nap.” Her expression wasn’t quite unsettled, but there was a sudden alertness to her mien.

Ruby shrugged in a way that might have come off as defensive, though she wasn’t sure how it was possible. “Yeah, but then I started thinking about what we were doing for the Winter Solstice. Are we celebrating together this year?”

“I’m not going anywhere,” Weiss replied immediately. Her mouth curled in disgust at the thought. “I would sooner jump off a cliff than go to my father’s party this year.”

“Me neither,” Blake added. “I’m not doing solstice with Sun and his moms this year- not when he’s introducing his girlfriend to them.” There was something sly in her expression that promised she was looking forward to hearing what happened without her there to act as a buffer.

Yang’s brow furrowed, though she had focused her eyes on the game before her. “I mean, we could all go to Patch, but there’s still Ajax to worry about- Olive mentioned that she was visiting family in Atlas for the solstice. And I’m not sure I want to saddle Sable with him the whole time,” she added.

Weiss scoffed. “Like they would care.”

Ruby could see the look Yang shot Weiss, but she had no clue what it implied. A quick look to Blake confirmed that they both noticed it.

“Then we could have everyone come here,” Ruby suggested.

Yang fumbled with the controller, nearly dropping it on her lap. “Who is ‘everyone’?” she asked once she finally regained her grip on the thing.

“Dad, Qrow, Winter, maybe Sable,” she offered. “Dad could take the couch and I’m sure Winter and Qrow wouldn’t mind staying in a hotel while they visited. And I know that Sable doesn’t really have anywhere to go, so they could just drive over and hang out and have dinner or breakfast with us.”

The other three looked thoughtful.

“I like that idea,” Weiss decided. “If you two are up for it.” She directed the question more toward Blake than Yang.

Blake was smiling faintly, perhaps at the idea of a family gathering. “That sounds nice.”

Yang’s expression, however, was carefully blank. “Yeah, okay.”

Again, Ruby looked to Blake.

Blake’s body seemed to heave out a sigh.

“Whatcha playing?” Ruby asked, stalking over to the couch and fitting herself comfortably against Yang’s right side and threading one arm through hers.

Yang tensed briefly and then looked firmly toward the screen. “Nothing too interesting, just one of Blake’s horror games. She thought it would be funny if I tried it.”

“Are you hoping she’ll throw the controller through the TV?” Ruby asked Blake, not bothering to look around Yang and Weiss. “’Cause that’s what will happen.” But the gears were already turning in her head- this could be fun.

Weiss threw her arms in the air. “That’s what I said!”

Ruby slipped her arm out of Yang’s and darted for the light switch, Blake already chuckling in realization.

The other two yipped slightly as the lights went out. “What are you doing?!” Weiss asked sharply.

“Playing this properly,” Ruby replied, turning up the volume a bit. The game was currently paused, but the ambient swamp noises were still going.

“A little louder,” Blake pitched in, a grin crossing her lips. “And make sure the surround sound is going.”

Her smirk grew as she darted around the room, checking the handful of speakers and giving them each a thumb’s up before returning to Yang’s right. There was the internal debate of ‘maybe I should hide with Blake, actually’ but she decided against it, tucking herself firmly in Yang’s side.

“You may continue,” Ruby told her generously.

Opposite Yang, Weiss was muttering something that sounded like, ‘This is an awful idea.’ Which it was, honestly.

Yang resumed the game and continued her trek through southern Vacuo, maybe a half hour earlier on than when Ruby had first seen Blake play it.

Ruby still hated horror games, but she had to admit, the build up of tension was pretty impressive and the sound design was mind blowing, making her and Yang both twitch at every snapped twig underfoot and owl’s hoot in the distance. It took a while for Yang’s form to loosen, whether it was discomfort from the game or her sudden aversion to Ruby’s clinginess, Ruby wasn’t sure, but by the time it happened, the next big jump scare was upon them.

Technically, Ruby was prepared for the scare. In practice, she jumped and shrieked with Yang and Weiss, smacking her head against Yang’s jaw. There was another shout from Yang and a _thunk_ as the controller hit the carpet.

Blake was laughing. Of course she was.

“Why is your head so hard?” Yang whined. Ruby could see the outline of her in the dark, rubbing at the injured area.

“It’s even harder than yours,” Blake tossed in.

“Right? Wait-” Yang stopped, visibly swiveling to look at the snarky pile of fabric. “You’re the worst.”

The group shuffled around, getting reoriented on the couch. Weiss took a spot beside Blake, probably not wanting to be too close to ground zero, while Yang retrieved the controller from the floor.

“Can you grab me a beer?” Yang asked Ruby. “I think I’m gonna need it.”

Blake sighed from the opposite end of the couch. “You don’t need to keep playing.”

“Yes. Yes, I do,” Yang corrected, as Ruby padded her way to the kitchen. “I have a point to prove.”

Despite the scare and the impact of hitting Yang (whose face was every bit as hard as Ruby’s head, by the way), Ruby was smiling brightly. It had been too long since all of them were just… together. She was practically skipping on her way back with Yang’s beer, which she was betting it would end up all over the floor before the end of the night, even the bottle made it safely to the coffee table. And if not this beer, more than likely the next one would.

Yang was genuinely nonchalant as she took the beer from Ruby’s hand, fingers brushing as the bottle exchanged hands. “Thanks, Rubes. Now explain to Blake that I can handle little game.”

Ruby returned to Yang’s side, though not quite squished up against her this time, for everyone’s safety. “Yang can handle a ‘little game’, Blake,” Ruby defended immediately. “But I’m not sure our controller can handle Yang.”

That earned her a couple of chuckles and a shoulder check from Yang. “I change my mind: _you’re_ the worst. You’re fired as my sister.”

‘I can live with that,’ she thought, but didn’t dare say it aloud. “C’mon, that was only a little one! Keep going.”

Even in the dark, Ruby knew that Yang was grinning at her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know if anyone caught it, but I totally headcanon Sun with two moms, so that's going to be a recurring thing in my other works. I don't know when or why I started with that, but I'm not looking forward to it being Jossed.
> 
> Hope you're all doing well! <3


	28. Chapter 28

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> These chapter are not coming out as quickly as I had hoped. I was planning on finishing up this story (or at least the getting together portion of this story) before the end of the year, but, well...

A long time ago, the Winter Solstice was a celebration of life, of having survived the year and of the hope that everyone a person loved would continue to survive through the harshest part of the year. It was a time to give and love freely.

Currently, it was driving Weiss to drink.

Yang and Ruby were blessedly easy to shop for: a new game and a nice scarf for the former and a cookbook of exotic sweets paired with six prepaid paintball games for the latter.

Blake, on the other hand, hated receiving gifts.

Weiss wasn’t sure if it was the idea of people spending money on her or just not liking being given things; Blake definitely had a habit of trying to pay for her own food when they went out and was always determined to make her share of the rent payment directly out of her account, rather than letting someone write the check and allow her to pay them back- or even tell her it was no big deal.

Every year it was a fight to pick out something for her: practical, but inexpensive. No signed books, no art, no games, no new clothes.

She slumped back in her desk chair, giving her wine glass a little twist, swirling the liquid inside before taking a long drink. Delicious, but not helpful.

She had followed Ruby’s example of taking to the internet to figure out what Blake would like- as they both seemed to be having the same problem until Ruby simply decided that they would make reservations for a restaurant she knew Blake would like, thus making it a date and offering Blake a way to pay for her portion. Even though the other three still held that that was not how gifts were supposed to work.

Evidently, even Yang had an idea, not that she was helpful enough to include Weiss in her plans. Or offer her an idea. Or do more than smirk mischievously.

Ajax sighed from where he lay at her feet, his wet nose pressed against one ankle.

Weiss finished off the rest of the glass and stooped down to stroke his side, fingers weaving through his tan fur. It was getting thicker, somehow, due to the winter. And it certainly helped, as he was the only one of them who seemed entirely unbothered by the snow that had taken to dusting their front lawn, if not outright covering every inch some days.

Every little accident she cleaned up weeks ago was worth watching him frolic in the slush each morning, bouncing around as though he was walking on a trampoline instead of frozen water. Well, more or less worth it.

“I’m going to miss you,” she murmured, mostly to herself. “But I’m glad that Olive will have you around.”

He let out another sigh, breath warming her skin, and sat up to have his ears scratched.

She lost her hands in his fur for a while as she mulled over her current situation- living situation, not solstice situation.

Yang was being, understandably, weird around Ruby. Blake and Ruby knew this. Weiss knew that they knew, and they knew that Weiss knew. Weiss was pretty sure that Yang had ignored any signs that either of them could tell something was up, but she couldn’t be sure. However, Ruby was also being rather odd around Yang- not in the same way that Yang was around her, but still different.

Ruby didn’t seem to be clinging more than usual, but she seemed to be doing it more deliberately, as if in reaction to Yang trying to keep her distance.

Weiss sighed and pressed her forehead to Ajax’s. “She doesn’t know what she’s doing,” she muttered against the ‘mask’ of black fur around his eyes. “Neither of them,” she added after a beat.

Ajax whined at pawed at her: less talking, more scritches.

“Yes, you’re a good boy, Ajax,” she said, setting her nails to work under his collar.

Weiss took a moment to be relieved that her relationship with Winter was currently simple- and more functional than it had been since Winter left for Atlas Academy.

As much as she hated it, her ten-year-old self had resented Winter’s absence. The letters didn’t keep her father’s focus off of her or hold her through nightmares or play with her hair and tell her all about how their mother had loved her. Even during their visits, Winter felt far away, like she had left it all behind and couldn’t wait to be far away again.

Oddly enough, going to Beacon had mended some of Weiss’s misgivings. It was a little easier once Weiss was free as well. And getting regular updates via Ruby and Yang from Qrow had pushed her in the direction of making a bigger effort to reach out.

Speaking of reaching out…

Weiss gave Ajax a peck on the head and ruffled his ears before turning back to her desk. She cast the pup a patient smile as she picked up her scroll. “I’ll get back to you, promise.”

He pressed his nose to her knee in response and sighed loudly.

Shaking her head, Weiss dialed up Winter, mentally running back through her sister’s work schedule, just in case. Naturally, it was unnecessary, and Winter picked up after the second ring.

“Good evening, Weiss,” she greeted, a faint smile gracing her lips. “What do you need?”

Weiss felt herself smiling back. “Just to know your plans for the solstice. The rest of us were discussing what we were doing and the topic of having people over- namely yourself, Qrow and Taiyang came up.”

Winter hummed a bit. “That sounds nice, actually. Qrow hasn’t brought up the subject, so I assume that neither of your teammates have brought it up with him.”

“Not that I know of,” Weiss confirmed. She would bet money that both were far too wrapped up in their own issues to have done so. That, and she doubted that Yang would have invited her uncle anyway.

“One moment, then.” And the scroll was set, screen down, on the nearest surface.

Wait, had Yang told Winter? Or only Qrow? Or did Winter know, and Yang not know that she knew? Her head was beginning to ache. There was just too much information to keep track of when it came to Yang’s… situation. So, Weiss did the only thing she could and shot Yang a message. ‘Does Winter know?’

The last thing Weiss wanted was to ‘out’ her friend, but damn if she wasn’t considering going to Dr. Ward for therapy herself. In the back of her mind, she noted that she probably should have started seeing someone years ago, but she brushed the thought aside as Winter picked up the scroll and entered the screen with that same warm smile.

“He certainly in favor of the idea,” Winter told her, not looking particularly surprised. “I presume that we’ll need to rent a hotel for the duration of our stay?”

“Most likely, unless you would rather share the futon with him.”

Winter narrowed her eyes, as if offended. “I will be sure to make reservations, then.”

There was a quiet moment in which they both merely grinned at each other. Weiss always forgot how bad they both were at small talk.

‘Yeah,’ Yang’s message came back.

She sighed in relief and Winter raised a brow at that.

“Ah, I was just asking Yang whether you knew the _specifics_ of her visit a few weeks back,” Weiss explained, chest suddenly a little lighter with another person in her position- sort of. Yang wasn’t in love with Winter. And thank the gods for that; the last thing they needed was more gasoline on this fire.

Her sister’s expression was carefully neutral for a moment, before settling on tired. “It was… not the most pleasant conversation I’ve ever had,” Winter murmured. She settled back into a chair, rubbing one temple with her middle and index fingers. “But, I admire her attempt to make the right decision.”

Weiss hesitated a moment, one hand moving from her desk down to Ajax’s head. She stroked his ears slowly, more for her comfort than his, not that he cared. “What is the right decision?” she whispered.

The question had plagued her for weeks now. Ever since Yang had told her, really.

She knew what Yang was doing, but what was right?

There was a temporary stare down as Winter attempted to gauge Weiss’s feelings on the matter and Weiss tried to figure out what was going on in Winter’s head. This had to be awkward for her too, right?

“To not let this ruin their bond as it is,” Winter decided. “However that may occur, I believe that is what is important.”

“So, if they somehow got together…?” Weiss started.

A look of distaste touch Winter’s features, before being swept away by a blink and gritting of her teeth. “‘As it is’,” she reiterated. “Though, it is not my place to critique what two people do with their private lives and I refuse to pass judgement.”

Weiss gave her a look. “But you don’t like the idea- and don’t tell me ‘it’s not your place’, because I know you have an opinion.”

Another staring match ensued as Weiss silently goaded Winter into speaking her mind and Winter, equally silently, gave her sister a dark look.

“I highly doubt that my opinion will matter, but no, I do not like the idea. I understand, on many levels, that Yang and Ruby are adults capable of making their own choices and living the lives that they choose, but that does not change the fact that the possibility bothers me. Are you happy now?” Winter challenged.

“…no,” Weiss admitted softly. “But it’s good to know that I’m not the only one freaked out about this. She said that Qrow took it fine and Raven was expecting it, so… I was just wondering whether, well-” Weiss stopped abruptly, making a face.

Winter’s expression softened. “I see. It’s alright if you aren’t okay with this, you know. This isn’t your problem to solve or burden to bear.”

“It kind of is. Yang trusts me with this.”

“I know how much she means to you- how much they all mean to you. But remember to take care of yourself as much as you take care of them.” More firmly, she added, “ _Do not_ make me come down there myself.”

“I won’t. Promise,” Weiss told her.

Winter snorted. “We’ll see about that when I visit.”

~

There was a loud _thunk_ at the door.

Yang jumped in her seat, nearly repeating her performance the other night that almost destroyed the controller currently in her hand. “Gods!” She paused the game and stood in time for another _thunk_. “I’m coming, I’m coming,” she called, rolling her eyes. “Hold your horses.”

She yanked the door open and Ruby, obscured by at least six boxes, practically fell inward, her foot having come back to give the front door another kick. “Eep!” Ruby squeaked.

Yang managed to catch a majority of the boxes before they hit the floor, but two hit the ground with a sound similar to that of shattering glass, Ruby sprawled over the top of them. “What is in there?”

Blake appeared behind Ruby, a small evergreen hefted under one arm. “They _were_ decorations,” she murmured, setting the tree aside to help haul Ruby to her feet. “What did Weiss say about kicking the door?”

“Uh, don’t?”

“Yeah, don’t,” Blake confirmed, gently turning the boxes over. The sound of glass shards mingling met their ears and both she and Ruby sighed. “Well, looks like these are going in the trash.”

Ruby whined a bit. “Aww, but they were the pretty gold ones.”

Blake smiled down at her. “Should have thought about that before kicking the door.” She pressed a quick kiss to Ruby’s hair before taking the ruined baubles out to the garbage can.

Yang’s heart ached at little at the silly smile on Ruby’s face as she watched Blake walk away. “So, we gonna set these things up? And why didn’t you take us to come pick out a tree?”

“We wanted it to be a surprise!” Ruby told her, plucking up the tree.

It was about three feet tall and sat in a decent sized plastic pot. The limbs were a little sparse, but the needles were bright and healthy. The smell of pine was as fresh and sharp as always.

There was noise coming from the stairs. “What is going on down here?”

Ruby just raised the tree in response, Yang following suit with the boxes of decorations.

Weiss’s eyes lit up.

“Why didn’t you tell us?” she asked, though her tone lacked accusation as she trotted down the last few steps, Ajax hard on her heels and quick to investigate the new flora.

“Surprise,” Yang, Ruby and Blake, now stepping back inside, echoed.

Weiss glanced briefly between the three of them, shook her head and clapped her hands twice. “Alright, let’s get started.”

It was nothing short of a disaster.

Half the time any of them took a step, someone tripped over Ajax, who would yelp, dart away and come back in time to trip up someone else, if not the same person once more. Blake ended up with a string of lights tangled around one ankle and spent maybe ten minutes trying to unwind it from the maze of knots that had taken shape over the course of what was probably twenty seconds. Yang and Ruby destroyed eight ornaments between the two of them, three for Ruby and five for Yang. Meanwhile, Weiss crushed an empty box and mangled a lower branch in her mad fumbling to not land on her face.

They would be picking glass out of the carpet for weeks; maybe out of their feet if they weren’t careful.

“Why don’t you sing some solstice songs for us, Weiss?” Ruby asked as she began setting aside some of the empty- and not destroyed- boxes.

“Ha! No,” Weiss deadpanned. “We’ve had this discussion.”

Yang gave the heiress a playful elbow to the side. “C’mon, it’s for us, not one of those fancy choirs!”

Weiss batted her arm away, briefly turning the back and forth into a swatting fight before Blake slipped in between them, likely in an attempt to keep them from accidently murdering the tree somehow.

“I have sung those same stupid songs every year since I was eight! Not a single word is coming out of my mouth for anyone- not even you three,” Weiss declared, much as she did every year.

And, much as they did every year, Ruby and Yang whined.

“But you have such a pretty voice,” Ruby coaxed.

“Yeah, we could listen to you sing all day,” Yang added eagerly.

Weiss gave them both a dirty look. “That’s very nice of you to say, but flattery gets you nowhere.”

“How about you sing something else, then?” Blake suggested.

The other two perked up- any singing was good singing.

“How about we turn on a radio?” Weiss shot back, picking up the boxes Ruby had set aside and taking them toward the designated storage closet.

Yang sighed. “You’re no fun.”

Weiss didn’t deign to respond to her. “So, is there anything you two normally have during the holidays? My father serves eggnog of the alcoholic variety and has cookies decorated for his parties. And I think my mother had a bread pudding recipe that she was fond of, but I don’t know where it is.” There was a soft hiss as something toppled off an upper shelf, but she caught it neatly.

“Ginger snaps,” Ruby chirped. “And we tried making a gingerbread house once.”

Yang snickered in memory and shared a grin with Ruby. Their father probably regretted that idea to this day: icing everywhere, random bites out of the ‘walls’ and a veritable war with gumdrops. Yang found one stuck on the inside of the pantry door only a year ago- about six years after the incident.

“Oh, we need to get candy canes,” Yang added.

“To mix in with the hot chocolate, yeah,” Ruby agreed.

“And we should get Summer’s ginger snap recipe,” she continued. Her throat closed for a second, but she kept her smile in place.

Ruby rocked up onto the balls of her feet. “If you hadn’t taken off,” she said lightly, “you would know that Dad gave me the recipe while Blake and I were visiting Patch.”

“They’re really good,” Blake muttered, eyes looking a little distant at the thought.

“I’ll get started on them now!” Ruby decided, bolting for the kitchen. Away from the mess of ornament hooks and pine needles and tangled lights and tinsel. And, when Weiss came back from the storage closet with the vacuum, Blake followed Ruby’s lead, ears flat against her head.

Yang followed Weiss as she headed for the nearest power outlet. “So, why did you need to know if Winter knew?” she asked quietly.

“We were discussing whether she and your uncle would be joining us for the solstice- which they will, by the way- and I didn’t want to let something slip that I shouldn’t,” Weiss replied, voice equally low. “She seems to have faith in you.”

“Winter? Faith?” Yang chuckled at that. “She practically shamed me for not talking to Ruby since I left.”

Weiss caught her hand and gave it a brief squeeze. “All she wants is for you and Ruby to stay close. I think she wishes we were there for each other as much as you two.”

“Yeah, well, she should be careful what she wishes for,” Yang mumbled.

The heiress fiddled with the vacuum’s plug for a second. “Are you going to be okay with inviting your father over?”

Yang shrugged.

“That’s not an answer.”

“I have to be.”

Weiss groaned. “That’s a bad answer.”

“Look, I’ll figure it out; I can pretend everything is normal,” Yang insisted.

“Literally no one thinks everything is normal,” Weiss snapped. “Blake came and asked me if you were okay because she and Ruby were talking about how weird you were acting.”

“ _Shit_.”

Weiss pinched the bridge of her nose. “I don’t know what you’re supposed to do, but you’ve got to figure something out before they stage an intervention.”

“I’ll figure something out,” Yang repeated, feeling like she was trying to convince herself.

~

Blake found Yang sitting on the back porch, watching Ajax hop around their miniscule backyard. Though her eyes were on the dog, she was turning her scroll over in her hands, fingers tracing the edges and occasionally hovering over the ‘call’ button on the screen.

“Who’re you calling?” Blake asked softly, shutting the door behind her.

Her partner jumped slightly, but luckily didn’t toss her scroll. She took a deep breath as Blake sat beside her, their shoulders mere inches apart; most of the time, Blake would have leaned against her, but she wasn’t sure how welcome that would be these days.

“My dad,” she admitted. “He’s so excited for you and Ruby and… I just don’t want to drop him in on my awkwardness, you know?”

Against her better judgement, Blake bumped her shoulder against Yang’s. “I understand. And I’m sure he would, too,” Blake told her. “I only know him a little, but he seems like a good man and a great father.”

Yang swallowed hard and Blake had to wonder if she said the exact wrong thing. “He’s both of those things,” Yang whispered, sounding like the words were choking her. “And he probably would- understand, I mean. Sometimes I wonder what I’ve done to deserve him.”

“If anyone deserves people who love them, it’s you and Ruby.”

There was a sharp little noise as Yang hiccupped. “Thanks Blake.”

“For what?”

“Everything? For being there for me and for Ruby and Weiss. For being patient with my,” she waved her hands vaguely, “and all that.”

Blake turned fully and hugged her.

Yang stiffened for a moment before melting into the embrace.

“I love you so much,” Blake told her, stroking her back. “We all do. I hope you don’t forget that.”

“Ugh, I don’t deserve any of you,” Yang muttered into Blake’s hair.

“Yes, yes you do.”

They stayed like that for a while, Yang just being held.

It was chilly out, and the sun was getting lower in the sky, but Blake felt perfectly warm where she was; Yang tended to have that affect, both physically and emotionally. Ajax’s happy little yips as he entertained himself were actually kind of endearing and the rumble of the occasional car passing by had become almost normal over the last few months. There was a serenity in just being there.

“Alright, if you don’t let me go I’m going fall asleep out here,” Yang said, her voice having lost the tremble that came with being near tears.

“I could think of worse fates,” Blake said flippantly, even as she gave her a parting squeeze and withdrew. She sat back a bit and brushed some hair behind one of Yang’s ears, more out of habit than actual thought. In hindsight, perhaps not the best move, considering the growing pinkness to Yang’s cheeks.

Yang faced the yard again, shoulders a little stiff. “I, uh- I’m gonna call my dad.”

Blake stood abruptly. “Good idea.”

Internally, she was banging her head against a wall as she stepped inside.

~

On one hand, it was a relief that Blake was still comfortable with her. On the other, Yang was still attracted to her- to her sister’s girlfriend. And said sister, but that was hardly the matter at hand. It had been nice to be physically close with her again- mostly it had just been Weiss and Ruby’s bout of clinginess, not that both didn’t have their own charms, but she missed just casually throwing herself at _all_ of them.

She missed Blake’s head on her shoulder and Ruby’s head in her lap as they watched movies. She missed hugging Weiss and Ruby from behind when one was at the kitchen counter, mixing or chopping or sautéing something or other.

Theoretically, she could keep doing that, but it probably wasn’t the best idea if she wanted everything to go back to normal- and potentially dating Weiss.

‘Literally no one thinks everything is normal.’

She sighed at that; she always sucked at hiding her feelings.

“I’ll figure it out,” she muttered to herself and hit the ‘call’ icon before she could change her mind- again.

Her dad answered on the third ring, sunny smile immediate and warming. “Yang! How are you, kid?”

The smile that came to her mouth was involuntary and sincerer than she had expected. “I’m doing alright, Dad. How’re you? The end of the semester hit you hard this year?”

“Just like every year,” her father confirmed, shaking his head. “You would think I’d get over the serial procrastination sooner or later, but-” he sort of shrugged. “I’ll be catching up on the sleep I lost until I go back.”

“Well,” she drawled, “maybe you can do a little catch up while you’re visiting us for the solstice? Blake and Weiss have taught us how to be quiet in the mornings and we can look after Zwei.”

His grin only grew broader. “That sounds great. It’s about time I saw the new place.”

“I know,” Yang agreed. “I’m surprised you didn’t come down to vet it yourself.”

“I would’ve if I didn’t have those damn seminars every summer- one of these days they’ll trust us to know how to teach without being taught something new every year.”

Yang shook her head. “The fucking school boards never learn, do they?”

“Never,” her dad confirmed, mock solemnly. “Seriously, if you value your sanity, don’t go into teaching. Unless it’s at a level where they can’t boss you around anymore.”

“Well, why don’t you do that?”

“Because then I’d have to live in the city,” he said slowly. “And you know I hate Vale- Atlas and the others, too.”

Her mouth quirked up. “I know, but it would be nice having you close.” Despite everything, Yang found that she still meant that.

“You’re welcome to visit any time,” he told her. “Come to work with me, be a sparring partner, give my know-it-alls who think they’re ready to be hunters already hell.”

“Alright, we can make plans once you get here?”

He laughed. “No need to push, I’ll be there.” Tai paused and then said, “So, I heard that you paid Qrow and Winter a visit.”

“Yeah, they’ll be over too,” Yang replied. Her grip on her scroll tightened and the screen wavered a bit until she managed to loosen her grasp. “It was good to see them- I think they might actually last, you know?”

“Me too,” he agreed. “They seem to be good for each other.”

There was a second where he seemed ready to pursue his earlier line of questioning and Yang shut it down quickly. “Ruby’s been making ginger snaps- they’re probably ready about now, so I’d better go get some before they disappear.” Partially true- they were probably going to be pulled out of the oven soon.

“Alright, I wouldn’t want you to miss out,” he said, smile faltering slightly. “Love you, Yang.”

“I love you too, Dad,” she signed off. The screen darkened, and she set the scroll down with trembling fingers.

She took a deep breath. “I can do this. I’ll figure it out.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And sorry if the holiday-ish discussions feel weird because of the timing, I was also hoping to finish up this section months ago. Hopefully, the solstice will be finished off within the next two chapters.
> 
> Love you guys! Thanks for every comment and kudos you leave- even if I don't respond to your comment, know that I appreciate it and just can't think of anything to say (assume that I'm still lacking for words when I *do* comment too!). <3


	29. Chapter 29

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, let's try this again! Hopefully this time with less anxiety attacks ;) The original chapter 29 was taken down after I had a panic attack over how shitty I think my writing is.
> 
> Chapter 30 is shaping up pretty quickly and the next one has an outline- an actual outline! That's new.

Weiss nearly did a double take as Blake slunk past the kitchen.

It was six in the morning, a time that Weiss wouldn’t even voluntarily be conscious for, but there was Blake in worn jeans and a dark sweater, her hair bound back in a loose ponytail. The sight left Weiss blinking a few times and casting a wary glance toward her coffee mug.

But sure enough, Blake entered the kitchen a moment later, pulling on her favorite jacket. She’d likely grabbed it off of the coat rack in the living room. “You’re up early,” Blake observed, padding over to a cupboard to retrieve a box of cereal.

“I am awake early,” Weiss corrected drily, deciding that her coffee was likely ingestible. “You’re up early.”

Blake rolled her eyes. “Semantics. Rough night?” She went about pouring the cereal and milk. Normally, Weiss would offer to make some thing more substantial, but…

Weiss sighed. “I had some nightmares and couldn’t get back to sleep.” She could practically feel the dark circles under her eyes and the heaviness of her eyelids was almost painful. She hadn’t dared look at herself in the mirror, fearing the bloodshot sclera and exhausted expression.

“You know that you’re welcome to wake up any of us, right?” Blake asked, settling in to eat her breakfast. She reached out, tucking a bit of sleep-mussed hair behind one of Weiss’s ears. “None of us mind,” she murmured. With a bit of humor, she added, “It would only be fair.”

And, in that, she wasn’t wrong. More than once, her teammates had woken her up with pacing or sleep talking or, in a few extreme cases, sobbing due to their night terrors. It was more common while they were at Beacon, sharing a room, but it had happened once or twice since the four moved in together.

For the most part, those late nights were spent either talking out said nightmares or talking about anything else, typically while eating ice cream or as Weiss made a favored comfort food.

On one occasion, it had turned into a small party of Ruby, Weiss, Ren and Nora in the common rooms as Weiss made waffles and Ruby and Nora had a long debate on the merits of pancakes versus waffles. Ren had been pleasant enough company, making sure they kept their voices down and helping Weiss clean up.

“I didn’t want to wake anyone up.” Weiss took a long drink of her coffee; it was still a bit too hot, but the heat only warmed her belly rather than scalded her tongue. She changed the topic. “Are you going somewhere this early?”

Blake paused in her eating. “Well, most solstices before going to Beacon were spent at a shelter or soup kitchen or something similar. Miss Corvali gave me the idea of being on the other side of counter, so to speak, for the holidays.” There was a hesitant smile on her face, the kind she got when something gave her conflicting feelings. “I was going to spend this morning helping set up for a small solstice celebration for the homeless in this part of Vale- or for their children, mostly.”

Weiss’s heart melted. “Do you know if they’ll take walk-ins?”

“Weiss, you’re tired. You need to-”

The heiress gave her a sharp look. “I need to do something productive before I go mad. Just let me finish my coffee and get dressed and I’ll come with you.”

Blake frowned.

Weiss downed her coffee and stood to leave, expression clearly asking what Blake was going to do about it.

“Fine,” she relented. “I’m expected in fifteen minutes, so you’ve got five to be ready.”

Weiss cast one last smile over her shoulder and hurried up the stairs, the gears in her head turning.

~

Ruby draped herself across Dragonfly, a breath that she didn’t realize she had been holding slipping from her lungs. “Finally,” she breathed, giving the headlight an affectionate pat. She had known that she could do it- she was every bit as practiced as Yang and their dad. It had only been a few little documents and a test holding her back. “I’m glad it’s done.”

To her left, Olive chuckled. “Weiss can no longer get on your back about driving without a license,” she confirmed waving said license in front of Ruby’s face. “The picture was delivered, and she can finally be at ease.”

“I don’t need a chauffer anymore,” she sighed, gratefully accepting the proffered ID card and tucking it away. “Thanks for driving me out here, Olive.”

“Hey, no problem. You guys are doing me a huge favor taking care of Ajax for me.” She put her scroll in a pocket and snagged the spare helmet. “How about we celebrate? I know an awesome diner uptown with the best milkshakes.”

Ruby sat up and glanced at Olive quizzically; they hadn’t really hung out since she and Weiss broke up- and for a good reason. That parting taunt still seemed to hang over Olive every time she spoke with anyone on team RWBY, even Weiss, who swore all was forgiven.

“My treat?” Olive coaxed.

And, well, Ruby wasn’t the type to turn down a free milkshake. “Sure!”

It was a short drive, comprised mostly of Olive pointing and giving a few specifics at stoplights.

When Olive had suggested a diner up town, this was not what she was expecting: it was pretty old looking, like it had been around fifty odd years, complete with an old neon sign, fading paint where there should be lines in the parking lot and some pink and yellow flowers growing in the planters beneath the windows. In a way, it reminded her of Marina’s back on Patch- all the way down to the smells, though it lacked the prevalent scent of seafood.

“Take a seat wherever, sugar,” the hostess, a plump woman in blue called, flashing Olive a bright smile. “We’ll be right with yah.”

“Thanks, Kiki,” Olive chirped, waving Ruby over to the counter.

Ruby cast her a glance as they settled into tall chairs, backed with worn red leather. “Are you a regular here?”

“Have been the last for weeks, yeah,” Olive replied, shooting a grin at a waiter who dropped two menus with them. “Hey, Lowell,” she greeted, and he hummed in acknowledgement before darting off. Her attention turned back to Ruby. “Not sure how hungry you are, but the fries are to die for- perfect for dipping in a shake, too.”

Ruby laughed, “Weiss _hates_ when Yang and I do that.”

Olive snickered. “The weirdest things get to her.”

“I know!”

They sat in companionable silence as they both gave cursory looks to their respective menus.

“Think I’m just getting the fries and shake,” Olive decided.

“Me too.”

They stacked their menus together and Olive turned to face Ruby better. “Speaking of Weiss…” she drawled.

Ruby frowned a bit; she didn’t like that tone at all. “Ye-ah?”

“When are you and Blake asking her out?”

The noise that Ruby made was something between a snort, cough and sharp inhale and was maybe a combination of those things, not that either of them could say for certain. Whatever it was, it turned into a cough that left Ruby hacking for a few seconds, Olive awkwardly patting her on the back.

“Well, I’m glad you weren’t drinking anything,” Olive muttered as Ruby came down from her fit.

The earlier waiter had dropped off a glass of water for her, brow furrowed in concern and now Ruby was downing it like it would save her life. “You alright, Ruby?”

Ruby finished a massive gulp, throat sore as the icy liquid went down. “Fine,” she croaked. “You don’t just say things like that.”

“You sound like Weiss…” Olive grumbled and made a vague, frustrated gesture. “I figured you’d appreciate the brevity! We both knew it was going to happen, so I don’t know why you were so surprised that I brought it up. One second,” she told Ruby, turning to the waiter to give their orders, pausing only to inquire what flavor Ruby wanted.

“Strawberry,” she replied wanly, and took another drink of her water.

Was it really that obvious? Had Weiss told Olive that she and Blake were polyamorous, or had Olive simply guessed? Ruby had seen her watching them with this odd, thoughtful look that none of them liked much, but it never occurred to her what she had been thinking about.

The waiter took his leave with one last concerned look at Ruby and then Olive looked back to her. “Sorry about that, I guess. I didn’t realize that it would freak you out; was I off base?”

Ruby shook her head. “Not at all,” she confessed quietly. “Blake and I both… really _like_ Weiss.”

“I always thought it was just Blake,” Olive admitted. “But, in hindsight, I can kinda see it.” She smirked a bit. “You _did_ immediately show off your weapon when we first met.”

She slumped a little. “I don’t think I was aware of it, then, if I even really felt like that at the time.”

Olive rested her elbows on the counter, watching Ruby in that same, considering manner. “Are you going to ask her out?”

“We were talking about it- Blake and I,” Ruby admitted, shifting under Olive’s gaze. “But she and Yang haven’t been the same since Yang got back from Atlas and after that incident…” she trailed off, not too interested in getting into the gritty details with someone who wasn’t Blake. “Probably not any time soon, if at all.”

It was obvious that Olive wanted to pry, but she just sighed. “Well, she’d be an idiot to turn you two down, you know. I think the three of you would be pretty happy together.” Her expression loosened there, turning into something soft and encouraging.

That smile took a bit of weight off of her shoulders. “Me too,” Ruby agreed. ‘But still incomplete,’ her brain added. She changed the topic. “How did you get into motorcycles, anyway?”

Olive flushed.

~

Yang didn’t know when it became habit to hug Sable, but they didn’t seem to mind, gently patting her back as she drew them in. “Hey, you alright?” they asked softly, making no attempt to move from the doorway. There was chill in the air that Yang likely couldn’t feel, but they decided to let her have this.

She gave them a tight squeeze in response, pressing her face into their shoulder.

“That bad, huh? Wanna talk about it?”

“Nope. But I kinda need to. My therapist is visiting his husband’s family for the holidays and I don’t want to bother him,” Yang muttered into their shirt.

Sable sighed and squirmed out of the embrace to look Yang in the eye. “You know he gave you his number for a reason, right?” Now they stepped past her, into the house, pulling the door shut behind them. “He doesn’t seem like the kind of guy who’d be bothered by this.”

“And that makes it wo-orse,” Yang insisted in a half-whine. She took a step towards the kitchen. “I’m gonna grab a beer, you want one?”

“Ha, no,” they replied. “Do you remember what happened last time? I’d rather not say anything you or the others don’t need to hear.”

Yang winced. “Right, good thinking.”

They followed her in anyway- and nearly got bowled over by Ajax.

“Hey, buddy,” they cooed, dropping to their knees to pet him.

He put his front paw on one of their thighs and hopped up to give them a slobbery kiss on the nose.

Weiss sighed as she watched this happen, Sable pressing their face into his fluffy chest and nuzzling while he drooled happily on them. “You shouldn’t be encouraging him like that,” she chided, though her tone was mild at best. One hand rested on a cocked hip as she turned away from the kitchen counter, a half-peeled potato in one hand. “He doesn’t need the habit of jumping on people.”

“Ajax doesn’t jump on people,” Sable protested, scratching under his collar. “Just me! And don’t act like you aren’t happy to not be tripping over him right now.”

The heiress scowled and waved the peeler at them, while Yang snickered at the bickering pair from the fridge. “You two can help or you can take Ajax out of the kitchen with you.” She cut Yang a look. “In fact, you can unload the dishwasher, if you have to time to drink.”

Sable was already on their feet. “C’mon, ‘Jax, let’s go!”

The puppy trotted after them eagerly, prancing a bit despite his absent paw.

“And don’t nickname someone else’s dog,” Weiss called after them. “I’m not going to explain to Olive-” She was cut off by the sound of the backdoor slamming shut.

Yang ducked out before Weiss could return her attention to her, following Sable out back with a beer in hand. “One of these days she’s going to snap at you and then you’re going to find out how scary she is.” She popped the top off and took a swig.

“I’m a grad student with a full-time job,” Sable replied solemnly, even as they waved Ajax’s rope toy over his head. “Nothing scares me.” Their arm whipped back and forth a few times, sending Ajax bolting halfway across the miniscule yard and back, hopping eagerly.

In the end, they tossed it upward, Ajax leaping to catch it neatly and darting as far away as possible.

They sighed, mostly to themself. “He loves being chased.”

Yang smiled as she plunked herself down on the porch. “No kidding; he could probably wear Ruby out.” The smile disappeared.

“Oh boy, what is it this time?” they asked, finally turning their attention away from Ajax.

Yang slumped against their shoulder, head tilted back to watch the graying clouds. “So, we’re inviting Qrow, Winter and my dad over for the solstice.”

Sable tossed an arm over her shoulders. “Yikes,” they stated. “Two people who know and the second to last person you want to know.”

“Third to last,” Yang corrected idly. “I would probably die if Raven found out she was right.”

“What, before killing her?” Sable deadpanned.

Yang snorted, “If only. She would kick my ass half way to Mistral and then spare me out of some twisted sense of family loyalty.” She shook her head and took another long drink.

“How are you going to deal with this, then?”

“Deal with?” Yang echoed. She was beginning to hate those words with a passion. “I’m going try not to act too awkward, hope that Qrow, Winter and Weiss will have my back if I am acting awkward and pray that Dad completely repressed that conversation with Raven.”

Sable shook their head. “Do you really think that’s going to work?”

Yang set the beer down with a little too much force, the liquid foaming up and out, soaking the concrete beside her. “No,” she admitted, voice cracking on the single syllable. “But I don’t know what else to do.”

They were quiet for a bit.

“And, you know, half of me wants this out there and over with,” Yang confessed. “So that I don’t have to sit around and worry about people finding out, so I could just… finish it. Ruby and Dad and Blake can do what I’m afraid of and things can go to hell and I can quit worrying about it happening and just deal with it,” she rambled. “Course, the other half that knows better…” she trailed off.

“Wishes it wasn’t happening at all?” Sable offered.

“Exactly.”

After a moment’s contemplation, they murmured, “I’m sorry I pushed you, back then. I didn’t realize it would screw up so much- though I probably should’ve.”

Yang scoffed. “Either I was getting it out then or I was going to snap eventually.” She leaned back a bit to look at them. “I’d like to think that I wouldn’t have, that I would’ve gotten over it sooner or later, but the longer this goes on, the more I doubt it.” Yang let out a tired laugh. “Though, if you do feel bad… you could always back me up during the solstice?”

There was a light tap on Yang’s back as Sable’s tail began to wag. “Was that an invitation?”

Despite everything, Yang found herself smiling at their brightening tone. “What do you think?”

“I’d love to join you guys,” they decided. “My roommates are visiting their families and, well… if my mother is anything like yours, I have no intention of seeking her out.”

They shared a dark chuckle over that and went back to watching Ajax, who was entertaining himself by tossing the rope in the air and catching it, effectively playing fetch with himself.

It was still cool out, but Yang radiated enough body heat for Sable to sit outside comfortably, slumped against each other as they watched the shepherd and listened to the wind. The air was fresh and chilly in their lungs, carrying the scent of rain and a hint of pine.

Things felt like they had been moving in fast forward lately and Yang found herself really enjoying this sudden moment of stillness.

The door behind them slid open and Ajax lost all interest in his toy, nearly leaping over Yang and Sable to get to Olive, who yelped at his lunge for her.

“Down, boy!” she yipped.

Behind her, Weiss was already saying, “See, Sable, what did I tell you?”

They stood abruptly, a bit of pink rising in their cheeks. “He doesn’t do that with anyone but me- normally!”

Olive unknowingly mimicked Sable’s earlier actions, dropping to her knees to let Ajax greet her properly. “It’s fine,” she managed, carefully keeping Ajax’s tongue away from her mouth. “He’s allowed to be excited.”

Weiss rolled her eyes. “Yang, you left before unloading the dishwasher.”

Yang tossed her head back, letting out a theatrical groan.

“I’m sorry, did you just volunteer to take Blake’s dish night, too?” Weiss asked.

The blonde worked her way around Olive and into the house with Weiss on her heels.

~

Ruby patted her stomach as she walked, quietly content with the soup Weiss had made and the fact that ginger snaps would be waiting once she and Yang returned. It had surprised her that Yang had accepted her invitation of going on a walk around the neighborhood, not that Ruby was complaining.

They walked closer than they had been in a few days, arms brushing as they meandered along the sidewalk, taking in the lights and decorations that had gone up over the last week or so. There were a few houses with nothing, but most at least had a wreath on the door or a tree visible from their windows. Others were almost gaudy, with flashing, multicolored lights and massive inflatable snowmen or stags out front.

“It kinda feels like walking around Patch,” Ruby observed. “But, you know, a little more snow.” The temperature was always too mild for snow, much to their dismay when they were younger. Now, Ruby was a little relieved that they’d never had to drive on icy roads or shovel snow out of their yard. Being an adult really changed one’s perspective on things.

“A little bit,” Yang agreed, eyes lingering on the McKnight’s house. She pulled her gaze away, locking on Ruby. “Do you maybe want to go back there? After the solstice, I mean. Dad and I were talking about visiting and I wouldn’t mind seeing it all again before everyone puts their lights and trees away.” Her throat closed after the words came out, but she offered her sister a smile all the same.

Ruby beamed. “That sound great,” she chirped, silver eyes alight. “It’s been too long since it was just the three of us- you, dad and me.”

Yang’s eyes darted to the side, but she didn’t let her expression fall. “Yeah!” Her tone gave her away and they both knew it.

There was a silence as they both considered what to say.

“Sorry I’ve been so weird,” Yang said, beating Ruby to the punch.

Ruby chewed her lip for a moment, hands balling into fists as Yang took a subtle (but not quite subtle enough) half step to the side. “Is it about Blake? Me offering to share her, I mean.”

Yang sighed. “Kinda. I guess… the image of the three of us-” she didn’t have to fake her shudder, “and dad knowing… it just stuck with me.”

“He’d be okay with it,” Ruby muttered, a touch on the petulant side.

“But I wouldn’t,” Yang reminded her.

Ruby groaned. “I know. I just wish it didn’t bother you. Things would be so much easier!”

Yang resisted the urge to call bullshit.

“Maybe.” She drifted closer to Ruby’s side again and Ruby visibly loosened. “Sorry I’ve been putting so much space between us, lately.”

“It’s not okay,” Ruby muttered, earning a startled look. “But I accept your apology anyway.” She bumped Yang’s shoulder lightly. “I can’t say that I get it, but there’s nothing really to be mad about.” She took a breath. “Do you really need to go to a therapist over this?”

Yang blinked a few times and then shook her head. “Not _just_ this. A lot of reasons.”

“Reasons you can’t trust us with?”

“Ruby,” Yang said softly, a little hurt.

She sighed. “Sorry,” she mumbled, snagging Yang’s hand in her own. “I know that we all have to deal with things in our own way. I’m just used to that way being us talking it out.”

Yang gave her fingers a squeeze. “I don’t like keeping things from you guys, you know.”

“I know.”

“Just let me have the time to sort these things out,” Yang plead.

Ruby pressed closer. “I’ll be more patient. I promise.”

Yang stopped and turned, looking Ruby in the eye. “Thank you, sis.” Her voice cracked, and she drew Ruby in to hide the look on her face.

‘I’ll deal with this,’ she thought, resting her cheek on the side of Ruby’s head. ‘I can deal with this.’

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry to those of you who feel this is becoming slow, but I promise the pacing will pick up. This was never supposed to be a fast moving story, but it also wasn't supposed to become so angsty- I'm working on rectifying that.
> 
> (Funny story, I almost posted what I had of 30 instead of 29- that could have been confusing!)
> 
> <3


	30. Chapter 30

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fucking hell, why is this thing so long? For reference, most likely to my American readers, this thing is almost twice as long as 'The Great Gatsby'.

“Blake,” Weiss said slowly, “what _exactly_ do you think you’re doing?”

She stood on the landing between the first and second set of stairs, watching her teammate/roommate perched on a ladder at the foot of said stairs, a long wire attached to a bit of foliage in hand. Very specific, potentially disastrous foliage.

“I think I’m hanging a decoration,” Blake replied, a smirk playing at her lips as she worked, looking every bit as comfortable ten feet off the ground as she did on the couch. Her ears flicked in a way that Weiss knew as playful, and perhaps a bit mischievous. “Do you have a problem with that?” she asked languidly.

Weiss’s scarred eye twitched in agitation. “That depends upon whom ends up underneath said decoration,” she growled. “I do not need to see my sister make out with that drunk any more than strictly necessary.”

Blake chuckled, but didn’t pause in her work. “I thought you were supportive of her relationship,” she teased. She stopped and glanced down. “Could you come over here and hold onto this for me?” the Faunus asked casually, patting the top step of the ladder.

Logically, Weiss knew that it was unnecessary, but the mother hen in her quickly gave in to Blake’s request, trotting down the steps to place steadying hands on the ladder. “I do support her right to engage in any healthy relationship that she so chooses,” Weiss said at length, fingers curling around cold steel, “but I have no interest in witnessing _any_ form of it.”

With a neat twist and gentle press, the mistletoe settled into its new home and Blake hopped down with her typical grace. “Thanks, Weiss,” Blake murmured and pecked her on the cheek.

Pink looked good on Weiss, she thought as she gathered the ladder to take back out to the garage.

~

Taiyang’s arrival was a rush of movement and noise. He had barely knocked on the door before it swung open, Ruby nearly tackling him to the ground in greeting. “Oof, missed you too, kid,” he grunted, dropping his bag and more gingerly setting down Zwei’s carrier to give his younger daughter a proper hug, rather than let her dangle from around his neck.

Over her shoulder, he could see the other three waiting with varying degrees of the same affectionate smile. Blake still couldn’t mask her silly in-love look, while Weiss looked half annoyed at Ruby’s tackle and Yang… he could see a touch of strain in her face. Why wasn’t she over there too?

“You know it hasn’t been that long,” he said lightly, leaning forward until her feet touched the ground and she finally relinquished him. “We talk almost every day. Which is more than I can say for this one,” he jabbed playfully, reaching out for Yang.

She slipped past Ruby and practically sank into his embrace. “It’s good to see you, Dad,” she mumbled into his shoulder.

Ah, he knew that tone. He had heard it for years, ever since Yang first found out about Raven, actually. This was the tone of ‘something is wrong, and I have a reason not to talk to you about it’. Mostly it had been about her mother, occasionally about a boyfriend or girlfriend and one time about a fight at Signal that she really shouldn’t have gotten into. For some reason, he doubted it was like any of the aforementioned reasons: she had actually learned to come to him for those things, so it must be something new.

He gave her a firm squeeze and took a step back to grin at Weiss and Blake. “Good to see you both- hope my girls have been proving they weren’t, in fact, raised in a barn.”

“They really haven’t,” Weiss replied, reaching out to shake his hand.

Tai tugged her in to a loose hug.

She stiffened for a moment, patted him hesitantly on the back and he let her go. “Blame Qrow,” he told her lightly and shifted his attention to Blake, to whom he offered a handshake.

Blake shot Weiss a sly look and shook his hand graciously. “It’s a pleasure to see you again, Taiyang,” she said formally.

“And you, Blake,” he replied, taking a step back. “I trust Ruby’s been a perfect gentlewoman,” he said, the words aimed more at his daughter than her.

“Naturally,” Blake replied easily. “She certainly didn’t learn that from Qrow.”

Taiyang tipped his head back, barking out a laugh. “No, no she did not.” A little wryly, he added a self-deprecating, “Doubt she learned it from anyone.”

An impatient yip sounded from his feet and the carrier shifted slightly as Zwei bounced inside, eager to be out among some of his favorite attention-givers. “Sorry, buddy,” Taiyang apologized, grabbing the carrier and allowing Yang to take his bag. “Think I could take him out back?”

Weiss nodded. “Absolutely, come this way.” She led him through the house to the back door and opened it for him.

Ajax, seeing a new person, bounded over eagerly, tail wagging furiously. A few steps short of Tai, he stopped short, catching sight of Zwei who was barking in excitement. He promptly turned the other direction, darting into the corner of the yard.

Taiyang could hear Yang and Ruby laughing from inside the house. “Quite a guard dog you’ve got there,” he joked, leaning down to let Zwei loose.

A little streak of black and white fur bolted toward Ajax.

Ajax let out a distressed yelp and took off- it was only his longer legs that kept him from being bowled over by Zwei and allowed him to duck behind Weiss.

“He hasn’t really been around other dogs since Olive got him,” Weiss noted, crouching down to give the shepherd a reassuring scratch behind one ear. He whined pitifully as Zwei altered his course, heading back in their direction. “A bit of an oversight on our part,” she muttered, mostly to herself.

Taiyang chuckled, but stepped out in front of Weiss, catching Zwei before he could tumble into Ajax and Weiss both. “Whoa there, Zwei, take it easy.” He plucked the corgi up, tucking Zwei under one arm despite his fervent squirming. “You’re gonna give poor Ajax a heart attack like that.”

Very slowly, he knelt down in the snow, keeping Zwei still. “C’mere Ajax,” Tai coaxed.

Ajax peeked around Weiss’s leg, sniffed a few times and inched closer.

The process continued for a moment or two until Ajax and Zwei were calmly checking each other over. Zwei’s whole form wiggled with the force of his tiny tail wags and Ajax’s posture was beginning to loosen.

“Huh,” Weiss said, eloquently. “How did you know to do that?”

Taiyang let out a hearty laugh. “I had to do something similar with Ruby and Zwei when we got him.”

That shocked a giggle out of Weiss as well.

Blake poked her head out back. “Please tell me you have that on video.”

“As a matter of fact,” Yang told her, grinning broadly, “we do.”

Ruby whined quietly.

~

Yang knew that her dad knew that something was up and damn... she did not like this.

But everything felt normal, somehow, sitting at the kitchen table and chatting as Weiss and Ruby made BLTS and Blake perched on her chair like a lunatic, trying to avoid Zwei’s unrequited affection. Ajax had settled himself comfortably beside her dad, who had likely become one of his new favorite people and Yang found her posture loosening as her dad finished up yet another story of some asshat student that thought she was ready to be a huntress.

“I swear,” Taiyang said, mouth curling at one corner, “Signal needs to start administering a common-sense test before admittance.”

“Good thing it happened after Ruby and I graduated,” Yang said lightly.

Ruby cast a betrayed look over her shoulder. “Excuse me, but I had survival instincts, even then!”

“Less talking, more chopping- preferably with your eyes on the knife,” Weiss instructed. “And no, no you did not. The second day I knew you, you tried to take on a Nevermore by yourself. Not to mention, you did so again- against a much bigger Nevermore, mind you- less than six months ago.”

Ruby slumped. “I don’t like any of you,” she grumbled half-heartedly.

“Winter and Qrow should arrive by this evening,” Weiss added, dropping a few sizzling strips of bacon onto a plate and quickly recovering the pan in meat. “So at least you’ll be in good company in that regard.”

Ruby gave a quick fist pump gesture and then returned to cutting tomatoes. “Oh yeah, Dad, you remember the polyamory thing you told me about?”

“Naturally.”

Yang felt her stomach twist.

“Blake and I worked it out- it’s a thing we’re doing.”

Yang watched as her dad cut a quick glance to Blake, who looked nervous, but not upset by Ruby’s reveal. “Please tell me that she at least asked if you were okay with it before deciding to tell me about it.”

Judging by Ruby’s return to slumping, that was a no.

“No,” Blake confirmed, “but I’m alright with it- glad that it’s out of the way, actually. I know you gave her the idea, but…” she trailed off.

“You weren’t sure how I would feel about the execution?” Tai guessed.

Blake nodded shyly.

He made a broad gesture in response. “Whatever makes you guys happy is fine with me! Long as no one’s getting hurt, it’s none of my business anyway.”

Yang wondered how much he meant that- whether he would really be okay with anything.

“Hey, you’re looking a little spaced out, kid.”

She blinked a few times- how long had she been doing that? “I’m fine,” she replied, offering him a faint smile. “Just really enjoying that bacon smell.”

Taiyang tilted his chin forward slightly, silently catching her in that lie. “I hear you,” he said after a beat. “I hear from Ruby all the time that she gets fed better now than she ever did- which I’m sure Marina would take offense to,” he added, offering Yang a smirk.

“Why is everyone picking on meeeee?” Ruby whined. She quietly grumbled her way through setting out the chopped tomatoes and lettuce, pausing only to give her dad and Yang a gentle poke in their sides for teasing.

The moment she turned away, Yang drove a finger under her ribs, earning a shriek.

“Da-ad,” she cried, as if she was six all over again, complaining as Yang played the I’m-not-touching-you game on a road trip.

“Hey, it’s not my problem,” Taiyang told her, leaning back in his chair so that the front legs were off the floor. “Take it outside if you want to have it out, but you might want lunch before you start a full-on brawl.”

“Yes, outside,” Weiss agreed, beginning to toast bread. “Where you won’t knock anything over.” She started the toaster and turned, pushing Tai’s chair back onto all four legs like she would with any of them. There was a moment in which she realized this was another adult not on her team she was pushing around, an expression crossing her face that sent Yang and Blake into giggle fits.

Their guest just looked amused. “Any other rules I should know about?” he teased.

“Elbows off of the table,” Blake offered, snickers tapering out.

“Everyone at the table before serving yourself,” Ruby added.

Yang managed to put in, “You do dishes if you piss her off.”

Weiss let out a long sigh. “Thank you, Yang, for volunteering.”

“Worth it.”

~

Taiyang settled himself on the edge of Yang’s bed, taking in the surprising lack of mess. He was willing to put money on Weiss’s interference, but that wasn’t what he was here to talk about. With Weiss and Ruby out of the house, taking Zwei and Ajax on a much-needed walk and Blake running to the store for some groceries (he doubted that there was anything she needed, but she seemed to intuit that Yang needed some privacy), it would be easier to get her talking.

Yang wriggled her way under one arm and pressed her cheek against his chest. Her breathing was rough, sounding a few gasps short of hyperventilation and one hand gripped his it was her life line.

He had his suspicions, but he needed to hear the words- preferably ones that stated his assumptions were wrong, but he’d deal with either outcome. He had to. The universe had blessed him with two wonderful daughters, some wonderful years with the love of his life and some friends he could trust with his life. If this was his biggest problem, everything would be alright.

“I can’t help you if you don’t talk to me.”

Something about his words struck her as funny, because a hysterical little giggle bubbled out of her mouth. “You sound like Sable,” she breathed.

He could feel his knuckles pop painfully as her death grip on his hand only tightened. “Sable- the nice mailperson?” He vaguely remembered Ruby talking about them over the last few months, sometimes more frequently than others, but always affectionately.

“They were the first person I told,” she whispered. “Had me all figured out.”

Tai gave her a gentle squeeze. “You’re not normally the type to talk without saying anything, Yang.”

“I told Qrow next,” she muttered. “And then Winter overheard, which was awkward as fuck. And Raven! If she ever finds out…” Yang looked up at him, blinking rapidly. “Dad… Dad, she was right. Ruby-” she choked on her sister’s name. “She was right about me,” she repeated. “I’m sorry. Sorrysorrysorry-”

He seized her gently, tugging her into his lap like she was a child and holding her close. His stomach was turning violently, but this wasn’t about him. “It’s okay,” he said into her hair. “It’s okay, you’ve done nothing wrong. Nothing is your fault- this is no one’s fault, and everything will be okay. I love you, Ruby will still love you, Blake and Weiss and Qrow will still love you.”

Tai wondered if this was his fault.

“I just want it to stop,” she whispered.

“Doesn’t work like that, sweetheart,” he murmured. “Not without a lot more time, distance and anger. Gods, I never stopped feeling something for Raven.”

“It’s not right.”

“You’re both adults.” His chest ached.

“You’re not okay with this,” she snapped, though her anger was mitigated by the fact that she had her arms wound around her his neck and her face in his shoulder.

He opted for a lie of omission. “Not when you’re tearing yourself up like this, Yang. I just want you to be happy.”

“And how am I supposed to do that?”

Taiyang exhaled deeply, steeling himself-

“No,” she pre-empted him. “Absolutely not.”

“So you’re just going to keep doing what you’re doing?”

She snorted. “I’m dealing with it.”

He scoffed back. “Bullshit you are, kid.”

“What are you gonna do, tell Ruby on me?”

“Maybe if you haven’t before I leave.”

Yang jerked back, looking aghast. “You wouldn’t.”

Taiyang forced a smile. “Maybe I will, maybe I won’t. You won’t know until it happens.” Hell, even I don’t know, he thought distantly.

She choked out a half-sob half-laugh. “You’re the fucking worst,” she muttered, pressing herself into his shoulder again.

“I take offense to that,” he countered. “I would argue that Raven is worse.”

“Fine, you get the honorable position of second worst,” she muttered. “Congratulations: you’re not as big of an asshole as you could be.”

“How does it feel, being the daughter of the two worst people ever?”

She sighed, body loosening. “Better than you would believe.”

~

Seeing Winter again was a relief, to say the least. Doubly so when she seemed equally confounded by Taiyang as she was.

It was late evening, just after the five of them finished dinner and wore out Ajax and Zwei enough to settle down. The sun had set, and the night’s chill had set in, a bit of snow falling from heavy gray clouds. The couple was urged in out of the cold and greetings commenced, much like they had earlier.

As she gently hugged her sister, Ruby tackled Qrow, who was soon exchanged for Yang, who was then changed out for a brief, but firm hug from Taiyang. Meanwhile, Yang, Ruby and Blake offered Winter a cordial nod and, in Blake’s case, a polite handshake- Winter seemed a little wary of interacting with her future nieces in law despite their warm greetings.

Taiyang proceeded to catch her off guard. “I must say,” he said lightly, taking her hand between both of his, “congratulations to Qrow and my condolences to you, Lieutenant Schnee.” He offered her a wink. “Let me know if you ever need a break from him- I’ve got his back for life, but I would kill him as soon as live with him another four years.”

There was a warm curl of satisfaction in Weiss’s stomach as Winter’s cheeks went pink and she opened her mouth to speak, only to stop before words could come out.

“Thank you, Mr. Xiao Long,” she said stiffly, once he relinquished her hand. “I will… consider your offer.”

He laughed, a warm, booming noise. “Just Taiyang- Tai if you prefer,” he told her. “You’re not exactly one of my students.”

Winter visibly paused before responding, “Of course. Please, call me Winter.”

Qrow smirked at his old partner, tossing an arm over Winter’s shoulders. “First my sister, now my fiancée? Do you have any shame at all, Tai?”

“None,” Ruby and Yang chimed.

Taiyang just made a ‘so what’ gesture.

Weiss, meanwhile, jumped back into hostess mode. “Do you two need anything? I know the flight from Atlas is a long one.”

“A drink would be nice,” Qrow said, “if you lot will let me drink this time.”

Weiss looked to Winter for her permission.

“Let him have it,” Winter said easily. “He didn’t make a scene in first class- I think he’s earned it.”

“Alright, we have some beer, but the bottle of wine is off limits,” Weiss informed him.

Blake piped up. “Top cabinet to the left of the fridge- I bought enough to fell a small army, earlier. Or sate the average team of hunters,” she conceded.

Weiss didn’t like the way Taiyang and Qrow’s faces lit up.

“Hey, Branwen, we haven’t gotten drunk together in what- two years, now?”

A look crossed Qrow’s face, but it was wiped away, exchanged for something lighter, before Weiss could process it. “Sounds about right, yeah. Think you can still keep up?”

Blake narrowed her eyes at both of them. She didn’t seem to like this anymore than Weiss did.

“You two can get drunk later, catch up now,” Ruby insisted. “Qrow and Winter still haven’t decided on a wedding day.”

Winter made a face. “We intend on getting married in a courthouse shortly before my next vacation.”

The shouting set in very quickly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shit is going down next chapter- so it'll either be up in a week or a month. I apologize ahead of time!
> 
> Also, I'm talking to my brother about adapting Remnant into a D&D appropriate setting, complete with Grimm monsters, mixing in the current religious lore and making Faunus variants for fantasy races. Think anyone would be interested in playing in that setting?
> 
> <3 you guys! Hope your week is better than mine and good luck to those of you with finals coming up!


	31. Chapter 31

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn't realize until yesterday that it's been over a month since I updated. Well...
> 
> *screams into the void*
> 
> Sorry, folks! Hopefully this chapter will make up for it.

Winter found herself smiling despite the situation, lips curling against her will as she looked down on the pair sprawled across the bed. Qrow lay face down in his pillow, arm tossed across his companion’s neck; whether it was meant to be a hug, a chokehold or was simply a side effect of Qrow’s drunken tossing and turning, Winter couldn’t be sure. Taiyang, on the other hand, rested face up, his expression far less troubled than it had been earlier but a few hours prior. He had kicked most of the blankets off of him and one leg dangled off the side.

She shook her head at the sight: what a mess. If this situation didn’t end in disaster, it would be nothing short of a miracle. But she pushed the thoughts aside as she went to work.

Her body operated automatically as she tucked in Taiyang properly, set Qrow’s arm to his side so that it wouldn’t grow numb, laid out two sets of painkillers and water and stepped back to look down on them again. Though she had never felt quite adequate in caring for people- namely Weiss, when they were younger- it never stopped her from trying.

It helped to feel useful, less helpless. And, on some occasions, it made others feel better as well.

Qrow mumbled in his sleep and threw himself on his back, rolling closer to Taiyang. Most likely because he was the only heat source around, as she knew from experience that he wasn’t too cuddly in his sleep.

She found her smile growing.

“Rest well, you two,” she murmured, leaning over the side of the bed to press a light kiss to Qrow’s temple. “I love you,” she breathed, more for her sake than his.

There were a few more mumbles that her heart interpreted as ‘you too’ while her brain brushed it off as his usual sleep grumblings.

She wrote out a quick note that she left beside the water, though she didn’t doubt that said water would end up covering her note. Such was life with Qrow. ‘Wouldn’t have it any other way,’ she thought, twisting the ring around her finger.

Winter stepped out of the hotel room, closing the door quietly behind her. She sent off a quick message to Weiss, who responded before the elevator down reached the bottom floor. Of course, her sister was already awake and making breakfast. Apparently, that many people required a proper feast, especially if Taiyang ate as much as Yang and Ruby.

She slipped into the rental car, deciding that Qrow could ride with Taiyang when they were ready to face the day- and their girls.

Vale in the winter was just as chilly as Atlas was in spring and fall, but at least there was less snow to maneuver. Winter never let her body enter autopilot when driving; however, that didn’t keep her mind from straying from the road before her. Little in particular held her for long- she couldn’t lose herself in her thoughts- but there was much to think on.

Yang’s relationship with Ruby continued to be strained, Taiyang knew everything but found himself unable to speak his mind, Qrow was beating himself up for not doing… something, much as he always did, Weiss was acting as Yang’s emotional support in spite of her own reservations and Winter just didn’t know what she could do to fix this.

She came to a stop at the curb of team RWBY’s residence, noting the appearance of another car besides her own and shook herself. Today was the day before the solstice: she could pretend everything was alright for a while longer. And, if it came down to it, could force herself to speak in Taiyang’s place.

From what little she knew of him, he seemed a good man, but no one could blame him for being unable to act in this situation. It was one no parent should have to deal with.

Winter nodded to herself and stepped out, pulling up the mental image of Qrow and Taiyang side by side. The smile that showed itself was real, to her own surprise.

She didn’t get the chance to knock on the door, a young Faunus pulling it open. “Oh, wow,” they said in lieu of greeting, one hand brushing shaggy chestnut hair out of their eyes, “you look exactly like Weiss.” There was a pause as they realized they were in the way and all but jumped off to the side. “C’mon in, Winter.”

“You must be Sable,” Winter guessed, stepping inside before snow could potentially drift in behind her. “I believe Yang mentioned you.”

“The very one that sent Yang packing to you,” they added. “Nice to meet you, by the way- ack,” their words turned into a yelp as Ajax barreled into the back of their legs. “Damnit, ‘Jax.”

Winter let out a chuckle as she knelt to greet the pup. “Good morning to you too, Ajax,” she murmured, scratching gently under his collar. While she and Qrow had no time for pets, it was always nice to be around them, though she was admittedly more of a cat person.

She rose slowly, meeting Sable’s thoughtful gaze. “Yes?

They flushed faintly. “Nothing, really. You and Weiss look so much alike- the only siblings I’ve really interacted with are Yang and Ruby. And, well,” they made a ‘I have no idea how to put this into words’ gesture. “Uh, I thought they were girlfriends when I met them, not sisters.”

Her head tilted curiously. “Is that so?”

Whatever they were about to say was cut off by Weiss calling out, “Winter, Sable, am I going to be doing all the work, here?”

“Don’t you always?” Sable shot back, though they were already heading for the kitchen, Ajax hard on their heels, two sets of tails wagging in near sync.

Winter tucked her arms behind her back as she followed suit. “Why are you asking your guests for help, rather than waiting for your teammates to wake up?”

“Because then we would be eating lunch, forget breakfast,” Weiss replied darkly, as she laid out bacon strips across an already sizzling pan. “And I’m not asking for much- just for Sable to wash up what I’m done using and for you to get a start on slicing fruit. Coffee is ready,” she added briskly. “Mugs are to the left of the microwave.”

That answer satisfied Winter well enough, and she began her work- after she poured her coffee.

~

Yang was the first one down, lured by the scent of cooked pork.

She didn’t seem to notice Winter or Sable, greeting Weiss with a hug around the waist, pulling the heiress flush with her form. “You’re the best,” she muttered into loose white hair and then seized a slice of bacon. “Hot-hot-damnit,” she hissed as she waved it in the air, as though that would relieve her burning fingertips. Yang dropped it in exchange for a cooler piece.

Weiss snorted, giving her a light elbow to the gut in response. “And you haven’t brushed your teeth- shoo. Then go wake up Blake and Ruby.”

“Yes, Miss Schnee,” Yang teased and turned away, bacon halfway to her mouth, only to come face to face with an unimpressed looking older Schnee. “Ah, good morning. Winter,” she added haltingly, shoulders coming up a bit and face retreating slightly into her sleep-mussed hair. “It’s uh. Good to see you?” Her voice cracked a bit.

“And you, Yang,” Winter murmured, her expression taking on something calculating that Yang _did not_ like.

Time for a tactical retreat, as Jaune would call it. Yang pointed at the door with her bacon strip. Sable made a choking noise behind Winter- likely a stifled laugh. “I’m just gonna. Go.” And she marched out.

Weiss could feel Winter’s eyes on her back, but she didn’t feel like having the conversation at hand.

Naturally, Sable picked it up anyway. “So, since when were you two a thing?” they asked casually. “I figured she wouldn’t get past the ‘in love with my entire team’ thing and just try to rebound- would that even be the right word? - outside the group.”

“Sable,” Weiss said quietly- and somewhat threateningly.

“Ah- I see. I’ll go help Yang,” they declared, exiting in a similarly stiff manner.

There was a moment of stillness before Winter stated, “Yang never mention anyone beyond Ruby.”

“Well, that _has_ been her biggest concern,” Weiss replied, hoping that she would drop it for now.

“You’ve been dealing with this on top of her feelings for her sister?” Winter asked. One hand reached out to Weiss’s shoulder. “That sounds… like a lot on your mind, Weiss.”

A bit of tension eased out of Weiss’s form. “It is,” she agreed, “but I can handle it.”

“Oh? Are you in love with her, too?” Winter’s tone held a touch of surprise, but mostly concern.

Weiss contemplated that for a moment. “No, not quite,” she admitted. “But I think I could. Yang is… loyal beyond words, she makes me laugh, I trust her and gods, she’s beautiful,” she rambled, only to stop and clear her throat. She almost jumped as Winter chuckled softly.

“It sounds like you’re halfway there, sister,” Winter murmured lightly. “I’m going to trust your judgement, but remember that you don’t owe her your feelings, no matter how she hurts right now.”

She stiffened briefly, but forced her shoulders to relax; Winter only meant well. And it wasn’t like she hadn’t had concerns of her own. “I know.” Weiss turned away from her work for a moment to meet her sister’s gaze. “I’ll remember that- no matter what.”

Winter smiled. “Good.”

There was an awkward pause where they might hug one another, but Weiss only smiled back timidly and returned to the task at hand, perking up slightly at the sound of feet on stairs.

“Hey, look,” Weiss heard Blake say, “mistletoe.”

Ruby let out a squeak and Sable let out a laugh that sounded a bit on the forced side. “Yeah, like you wanna see me kiss your girlfriend- Yang! Get out of the way,” they added, sounding a little strained.

“It is tradition,” Yang insisted, her tone playful.

Weiss shook her head to herself- disasters, all of them. It was a good thing she loved them.

~

Solstice’s Eve passed in a blur from there, in an array of feast-like meals, hours of storytelling, several gallons of booze and laughter that was far too loud.

The morning found a majority of the household- both residents and guests- waking up on the couch, a few nursing hangovers.

Blake and Ruby had, unknowingly, taken Winter’s role from the day prior as they began setting up water glasses and bringing a bottle of painkillers into the front room, resting them gently on the coffee table alongside Weiss and Winter’s coffees. The morning was peaceful in comparison to the night before, each person rising slowly, greeting the pair at their own speed and inhaling their drinks of choice. Sable, among the few that had avoided the alcohol, took the liberty of turning on the tree lights and putting on some light- definitely not holiday, for Weiss’s sake- music.

Ruby had to stifle a giggle against Blake’s side as Winter untangled herself from the mess of limbs that was the combination of Qrow and Taiyang, a chunk of hair flattened against her cheek and pale eyes still bleary from sleep. Meanwhile, Yang practically had Weiss, who had begun to stir at the scent of coffee, pinned under her form, aided by Taiyang’s arm tossed over both of them.

Weiss’s suddenly icy gaze watched Ruby balefully from beneath a sheet of blonde waves.

As if in response, Blake tucked her further into her side and pressed a light kiss to the top of her head. “Happy Winter Solstice, Ruby,” she whispered. A snicker followed her words as the pair watched Weiss squirm under Yang.

“Help me,” Weiss hissed.

“What’s that, Weiss?” Blake stage whispered. “I can’t hear you.”

Weiss’s eyes narrowed.

Suddenly, Blake and Ruby were mere inches from the clump of people, a glyph having appeared under their feet. It was only year of practice that kept them from tumbling forward and adding to Weiss’s issue. “Help me,” Weiss repeated darkly.

The couple shared a look, silently debating whether they would help.

“Do you want your breakfast casserole or not?” the heiress asked.

Very gently, they began removing Yang.

From there, things happened naturally- breakfast, more coffee, some hangover aftercare and then the big event: presents.

There was a veritable pile under the tree, wrapping ranging from brilliant red and gold in seasonal decorations to simple bags with bows binding them closed to little envelopes with names written in a neat hand. Taiyang took up the job of passing them around, taking a seat alongside the ‘children’ of the group. It was simple enough, unwrapping and opening and turning to others to offer thanks.

Yang was wearing three new scarves of varying shades of red and orange- courtesy of Weiss, Winter and Blake, while Ruby had pulled a new sweater over her head and Weiss was sizing up the peacoat that Winter had gotten her when Blake found Yang’s envelope, dually signed by Olive, of all people.

“Happy Solstice, Blake,” the Faunus in question read aloud, “for the holidays we’ve gotten you the promise that your home will be dog-free by the seventh of January.” She turned to Yang, a slow smile crossing her lips. “You shouldn’t have,” she said lightly.

“No, she shouldn’t have!” Ruby agreed in a wail. “Oh, Ajax!”

The puppy bounded over at the sound of his name, kicking up paper and boxes as he went. He didn’t resist as Ruby stuck her face in his fur and whined, only wagging his tail happily at some sort of attention. Zwei, not wanting to be left out, squirmed underneath Ajax’s legs, up into Ruby’s lap, earning hearty laughs from around the room.

More presents went around, as did more thanks and hugs. Winter praised the art piece that Taiyang had picked out for her and Qrow’s apartment, Blake and Ruby awed over Summer’s collection of books that Tai dug out and Sable let out a happy little noise as they clutched a leather jacket- the most expensive thing they (now) owned besides their car, even if that wasn’t by much.

Of course, the peace only lasted so long, Blake going stiff as she opened Weiss’s envelope.

“Concert tickets?” she asked hesitantly. She recognized the band as a rising group with decent music, but not one she was too fond of.

“Read the card,” Weiss told her simply, a knowing smirk on her lips.

‘I know you hate gifts, so here’s one for someone else: two tickets to be donated to the HFA charity auction, in your name. Happy Solstice, my dear friend, Weiss.’

Yang, who had peeked over Blake’s shoulder, uttered a joking, “How dare you top my gift?” as Blake surged forward to hug Weiss close.

“Thank you, Weiss,” she murmured. “That’s a wonderful present.”

Weiss squeezed her in return. “You better believe you’re getting one for yourself for your birthday, though,” she muttered into Blake’s hair, her tone mock threatening.

Blake sighed, “Of course, Weiss.”

~

Yang tumbled out of her and Ruby’s shared room, her head swimming and gaze clouding as her eyes adjusted to the comparable darkness of the hallway, the door swinging shut behind her and dimming the sound of music from the stereo and Sable’s drunken giggles. She needed space and air, though she had told the others that she was going down to top off her drink, now that Weiss had thoroughly cleared out the whisky. Admittedly, there was something attractive about the way she had downed the remainder of the bottle, but it also stole Yang’s chance at getting sloshed enough to ignore Ruby’s cuddling.

She moved gingerly toward the stairs, one hand on the wall as she worked her way down. Things became easier on the first landing, the light of the full moon drifting in through the uncovered windows; she was amazed by how clear the night was. It was as if the sky and moon themselves were looking forward to the light show maybe ten minutes off.

The rest of the house was decidedly cooler without the mass of bodies in motion, Ruby, Sable and Blake having taken to dancing, only one of them drunk and one of them entirely sober- under normal circumstances, Yang might be eager to see if Ruby could actually drink enough to experience inebriation, but she _really_ didn’t need that right now and was perfectly happy not to push the issue.

Yang was glad that her dad, uncle and Winter had returned to Winter and Qrow’s hotel room for the night, not that she liked the idea of exactly what could be going on there, with how comfortable Winter was getting with Taiyang- especially after Qrow laid one on him under the mistletoe the other day. She still remembered the look on Weiss’s face as they both analyzed Winter’s too-interested expression at the display; Yang shuddered in memory as she padded into the kitchen and hung her head over the sink, enjoying the cool tile under her feet and against her stomach.

“Are you alright?” Ruby whispered from behind her.

She jumped a bit, but couldn’t bring herself to fully turn. “Yeah,” she mumbled, chin resting on her chest. “I’m fine, just needed to step out for a bit.”

“Are you… not having fun?”

Yang chuckled, thinking of Sable’s flailing arms and Weiss’s helpless laughter at the sight. “Don’t worry, I’m having fun, Ruby. You know how it is- needing a minute.”

“I guess so,” Ruby agreed quietly. She skulked up to Yang, paused briefly, and then climbed onto the kitchen counter, heels tapping on the cupboard doors below. “You sure you don’t need me to hold your hair,” she joked weakly. “I know you’ve had a bit.”

“More than Sable,” Yang murmured, unable to withhold a smirk despite the less than ideal situation.

“Heh, yeah.”

They were quiet for a while, save for their breathing and Ruby’s little tap-taps against the cupboards. Outside, a premature firework went off, making Ruby jump slightly.

Ruby glanced at the stove. “11:58,” she announced. “You wanna go back up with the others?”

“In a minute,” Yang replied. “Not sure I want to move right now,” she added.

“Then I’ll spend my New Year with you,” Ruby decided.

Yang gritted her teeth for a second and tried, “And miss out on your first kiss of the New Year? Think of Blake, Ruby!”

“Nah,” Ruby drawled, “she’ll be fine.”

Yang sighed. “Have it your way,” she said resignedly.

Another pause, another premature firework.

“Sorry if I’ve been making this harder for you, Yang,” Ruby whispered.

Yang raised her head slowly. “It’s okay,” she lied.

“But it’s not!”

“Heh. No, not really,” Yang agreed.

Their gazes held as the fireworks began in earnest.

Ruby’s head turned to take in the lights and colors, but Yang… her eyes were on the far prettier sight.

She watched Ruby’s expression brighten, the golds and greens and blues shining in her silvery eyes, how the shadows and lights traces along her cheeks and jaw, the shape of her smile in the face of the light show. Yang’s heart pounded in her chest, racing as Ruby laughed in delight. The pounding rose to her ears, but it couldn’t quite drown out the crackles or Ruby’s sweet peals of laughter.

It was only when Ruby looked over to check for Yang’s reaction that she realized exactly where Yang had been looking the whole time. Suddenly, the fireworks seemed far less interesting.

“Yang,” she murmured, her sister’s name nearly lost to the booms and cracks and pounding.

Very slowly, beating back the voice screaming in her mind, Yang leaned forward until her forehead rested lightly against Ruby’s. If her mouth moved, their lips might touch.

They breathed deeply for a while, the enormity of exactly what was happening settled down around their shoulders.

Ruby shrugged it aside and kissed her sister.

Yang reacted instantly, without a moment’s thought, lest the moment break. She wrapped her arms around Ruby’s waist and drew her close, chest to chest, her arms taut in a way that Ruby couldn’t escape even if she wanted to. The way Ruby’s legs wrapped around her waist, as if to assure herself that Yang wouldn’t disappear, confirmed that she didn’t want her to go.

Callused hands ran up and down Ruby’s back and Yang shifted to begin kissing her in earnest, stealing Ruby’s breath away.

Neither had any idea how long it lasted, maybe thirty seconds, maybe several minutes, but when their mouths fully parted- not for air, but to finally acknowledge what was happening- neither could find a word to say. Not until Ruby managed to speak in a whisper.

“I love you, Yang.”

Yang stared at her for a long time before sinking down, her face dropping into Ruby’s lap as she held back tears. She didn’t know if Ruby could hear it, but she replied anyway. “I’m sorry. I love you too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not gonna lie, I cried in relief at finally writing that. I have no idea where I'm going or what I'm doing- with this or my life- but I'm glad this chapter is out. I may edit it in the morning, when my brain can words better, but for now I'm satisfied.
> 
> Thank you so much for sticking with this! <3


	32. Chapter 32

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know how I managed to do a longer chapter twice as fast as the last one while running a D&D campaign. Maybe it kick started my creativity, maybe I'm hitting a high before dropping to an ultimate low. Fingers crossed it's the former.

Ruby awoke the next morning, the feeling of Yang’s lips still lingering from her dreams. No, those weren’t dreams. She pressed her face into her pillow, eyes squeezing shut as her mind replayed Yang’s face in the light of the fireworks once more. She could still see the terror, the sense of utter uncertainty and feel the way Yang’s entire body relaxed into hers, like she had let all the weight on her back slip away. The tears and apologies hadn’t been great, but the very fact that Yang felt the same way sent her heart thundering.

That kiss had brushed aside any possibility of seeing Yang in a platonic light again. It seemed that Yang knew that and very much dreaded it.

Behind her, Blake shifted and groaned, burying her head further under her pillow.

There was a tiny, hot tendril of guilt curling through her chest and Ruby squirmed her way closer to her girlfriend, until they were back to back; a silent apology for a slight that Blake was unlikely to find fault in. Occasionally, she wished she was happy with her already perfect girlfriend and wasn’t hopelessly in love with Weiss and Yang.

Her heart jumped a bit as the thought slipped through her mind. There was a fear that came with thinking about it, one that she knew Yang was deeply familiar with- it certainly made sense why Yang had taken up a therapist, in hindsight.

Ruby stopped herself short: she still wasn’t entirely sure how Yang felt about her, just that Yang loved her and seemed to enjoy kissing her. For all she knew, Yang was just disgusted that she was physically attracted to someone she considered a sister. The thought made her stomach churn far more than the idea of being in love with her half sister.

“I can hear you thinking,” Blake sighed, pillow still mostly over her face. Her muffled words continued with an uncharacteristic grunt, “Ugh, or that’s just my head pounding. Why am I hungover after two drinks? Why did I drink?”

“I dunno, but you said the wine tasted really good,” Ruby murmured, turning and snuggling her face into Blake’s shoulder blade. “And yeah, I was thinking a bit.”

One of Blake’s hand left its place from where she was clutching the pillow and found Ruby’s hand, holding it as best she could from that angle. “You smelled a bit like whisky when you came up earlier. Did Yang talk you into drinking before she fell asleep?”

Ruby breathed deeply and then confessed, “She wasn’t asleep when I came back up. She just needed to be alone after we kissed.”

Blake’s form tensed and, very slowly, the pillow was raised from her space, despite the way she squinted at the faintest morning light seeping through her curtains. She was still for a long moment, before breathing a sigh of relief. “She’s still downstairs,” Blake reported, “talking to Sable. I was worried she’d take off.”

She… hadn’t considered that. “I’m glad,” Ruby whispered. “And I’m sorry I kissed her without-”

“It’s fine, Ruby,” Blake cut in. “Would you care if I’d kissed Weiss last night?”

Ruby perked up immediately.

“And before you ask, no, I did not.”

“Aw,” Ruby whined. She had liked the idea; gods she loved the idea of everything just… falling into place.

Blake chuckled slightly and then grumbled in pain. “One disaster at a time,” she stated.

At that, Ruby bit her lip. “Well…”

“You want to get everything out there.”

“I mean, two out of three for me and Yang already-” Ruby stopped. “I’m pretty sure Yang’s already in love with you- she couldn’t have been making _that_ up. And she’s been flirting with Weiss forever!”

Another strained chuckled. “Alright, we can do that.”

“Are you sure?”

Blake sighed again. “No, but some things really need to be said. It feels like we’ve been tiptoeing around each other for too long.”

“I know. It’s driving me insane. I’m just… not sure how much Yang would have listened to before- you know.”

“You’re allowed to say the words, Ruby,” Blake soothed. “I’m not going to judge you here and I _highly_ doubt that Yang or Weiss will.”

“Yeah, but it’s scary,” Ruby muttered, squeezing her eyes shut until dots danced across the backs of her eyelids. “It makes it real, something that people… hate. Something that people find gross.” Her mind drifted back several months, to look on Jaune’s face.

They hadn’t spoken in person since then. The closest they had gotten was when she and Blake got together with Pyrrha at a coffee shop and Jaune had claimed that he was still recovering from his last job. Sure, it was a fair reason, but Ruby knew that some broken bones (mostly healed by then) wouldn’t have stopped him under normal circumstances. Gods, she missed her friend.

Some days she wondered if they were even still friends.

~

Sable was halfway out the door, Ajax in tow, by the time Ruby and Blake had trundled downstairs. They gave the pair a wave with a piece of toast in hand, looking surprisingly well considering their sloshed state from the previous night. “Good morning, you two,” they greeted. “You guys have some shit to talk about, so I’ll be back in thirty.” They wrapped one of Yang’s dozen scarves around their neck and stepped out.

Ruby shot Blake a wary glance.

The Faunus only shrugged in response and pulled Ruby into the dining room.

Yang sat opposite the door, gaze fixed on a tall glass of water. She was still wearing her clothes from the day before and her hair was disheveled. The plum purple rings under Yang’s eyes spoke of a sleepless night, likely lost in thought.

Weiss, on the other hand, was rinsing out the bottles they’d gone through the previous night, wrapped comfortably in a fluffy bathrobe. She paused in her cleaning to nod in lieu of a ‘good morning’. Either her throat was sore from belting out a few solstice songs (that she still hated so much) at Blake’s tipsy request or she simply wasn’t sure what to say. Ruby elected to believe the former; a speechless Weiss was always a bad sign.

The pair sat down unceremoniously, neither too eager to eat at the moment. “So,” Ruby drawled, earning a violent flinch from Yang. She reached for Blake’s hand under the table and was met with a firm grip. Courage bolstered, she forged onward, voice steadier than she had expected. “We need to talk about what happened last night.”

Yang didn’t look at her, instead casting her gaze over her shoulder to Weiss.

Weiss set down the bottle in her grasp and took the seat beside Yang. “I imagine you do,” she murmured, voice a touch raspy. “Do you want us here for this?” Ruby nodded vigorously in response, but Weiss’s eyes were on Yang, waiting for her permission.

“Yeah,” Yang replied after a moment. “We should all be here for this.” Still not meeting Ruby’s stare, she looked to Blake. “I guess you know.”

Blake just nodded.

The silence was the worst part. It was heavy and tense; Ruby wished Sable was there with their outside perspective and ill-timed humor.

Weiss broke it first. “Look,” she said, her voice practically echoing through the kitchen, “whatever you guys are dealing with, I’m here for you. You three mean the world to me and nothing anyone says today is ever going to change that.” More quietly she added, “Please talk to me.”

“I’ve been in love with Blake and Weiss for months now,” Ruby whispered, “and I wasn’t sure about Yang until last night.”

Blake followed it up before Weiss could rehinge her jaw. “I’ve been in love with Weiss for almost two years and Ruby and Yang for the last few months.”

Weiss made a very concerning noise, but no one was stopping for her.

“I don’t know how long it’s been,” Yang muttered, “but I haven’t been able to think about anyone but you three. Even Raven picked up how I felt about Ruby long before I did.”

There was a loud scraping noise as Weiss jerked her chair back from the table.

At first, Ruby was worried that she was going to bolt, but Weiss only darted to the refrigerator to grab her coffee and begin setting up the coffee pot, her face burning red all the while. Ruby couldn’t help the choked giggle that snuck its way out, or the lightness in her chest as Blake and Yang snickered too. Weiss made an obscene gesture, one that had never been aimed at Ruby before, and continued with her work, muttering things that only Blake could understand.

Whatever it was, Blake seemed _highly_ entertained.

No one spoke until Weiss had a steaming cup of coffee in her hands, but the mood seemed less… gloomy, in Ruby’s opinion.

“Alright,” Weiss said, after taking a measured sip. “I am an oblivious idiot _apparently_ and have only ever considered dating Yang recently when she first told me about this whole-” she made a gesture toward the group of them with one hand.

Blake’s hand tightened on Ruby’s and, yeah, that was a little dispiriting.

“But,” she continued, “I will consider going along with whatever this is- individually, at my own pace, if it feels right.”

“Wait-wait-wait,” Yang cut in, holding up both hands in a firm display of ‘everybody stop’. “‘Whatever this is’ isn’t ‘going’ anywhere.”

Ruby couldn’t help the whine in her voice. “But you said you loved me- us!” Her throat closed.

“What makes you think that I would-” Yang faltered, waved her hands a bit more and then ploughed on, “ _see_ you when I wasn’t even comfortable sharing Blake?!”

Weiss rested a steady hand on Yang’s shoulder. “We’re not going to resolve anything if we start arguing.”

Yang groaned, dropping her loosely closed fists on the table just enough to rattle it slightly. “I’m not dating my sister or her girlfriend and that’s final.”

“So you don’t even care what we want?!” Ruby shot back. Blake’s hand squeezed hers in warning. “You’re just-” Ruby took a breath, struggling to gather her words from her flurry of thoughts. “You’re just going to decide what all of us are doing, even when the other three don’t want that?”

“This isn’t a voting type of situation, Ruby,” Yang replied, tone more even than before. “I know what I feel, and I know what you- what we want. But I also know what’s right and what’s wrong.”

“Even _dad_ told me he just wants us happy,” Ruby snapped. “If he can be okay with it, why can’t you?”

Yang stared at her hands for a long moment.

“Yang,” Blake murmured, reaching across the table with her free hand.

The blonde didn’t really react, just let Blake cover her hand. She didn’t respond, either, when Ruby did the same.

“I’ve spent so long trying to fix myself that I don’t know if I can do this,” Yang admitted, even as she shifted to properly return the touch, callused fingers running along Blake and Ruby’s. “I don’t know if I can ever really be okay with it.”

Ruby swallowed a lump in her throat. “So, we take it slow. We talk whenever we’re uncomfortable or having doubts. Maybe you keep seeing Dr. Ward, for when you can’t talk to us again. If anyone needs space, tell everyone first where you’re going and why.” She wracked her brain for any other ideas.

“We talk with other people who’ll support us,” Blake suggested, “not just Dr. Ward.”

“Like Sable,” Yang offered. “They were the first one I told.”

“And Olive,” Weiss added, “she’s had Blake figured out from day one.”

Blake’s ears went back. “What.”

“It’s… a story for another day,” Weiss demurred. “We also have Winter, Taiyang and Qrow to talk to.” She cut as glance to Ruby and Blake. “Anyone else?”

Ruby twitched. “Maybe Pyrrha, but not Jaune.” Something must have given her away because Yang’s eyes jumped to hers.

She could see the gears, worn from turning all night, going in Yang’s head. “That little shit,” Yang muttered, hands curling back into fists.

“That’s also for another day,” Blake cut in, giving her tensed digits a squeeze.

There was a heavy pause.

“Any rules you want to set up for individual things?” Weiss asked, straightening in a way that Ruby had seen only when she was at work for the SDC. “I would prefer to keep touch as it always has been- no kissing, easy on the hugging. Dates will be arranged at least three days prior and not expected to be accepted.”

“Is there a dotted line you need us to initial by?” Yang mumbled, a half-smile gracing her features.

Weiss elbowed her in the ribs. “Ruby?”

The woman in question fumbled a bit. “Uh… more group outings: movies, games, going to restaurants, even hunting. Just more time as a group in general. Anything else is fine.”

The others nodding along, Weiss looking approving. “Alright. Blake?”

“Pretty much the same as Ruby,” Blake admitted. “And the clarification that telling everyone that you’re leaving means in person, not through note or messenger.”

Everyone looked to Yang, who ducked her head. “It was once! Sorry I took a cue from Blake a single time.”

Blake’s mouth twitched. “Anything you need, Yang?”

Yang thought for a second. “Yeah, a few things. I’m going to need Ruby to keep our beds separate. I would like it if you guys didn’t push me too much about my sessions with Ward. And… be patient with me.”

“We can do that,” Ruby murmured.

“Okay,” Yang breathed. Their eyes met, and Yang nodded slowly. “Okay,” she repeated. “I’ll try, then.”

~

‘It’s taken care of. I think we’re all gonna be okay. Thanks for supporting Ruby and me, cause I know it couldn’t have been easy for you, Dad.’

Tai had been staring at the words for maybe five minutes, letting the implications wash over him, like the tides of Patch’s beaches rolling up over his head. He could feel Qrow and Winter’s eyes on him and they seemed to be keeping their eating quiet out of some odd form of empathy, whether or not they knew specifically what he was looking at.

He breathed deeply, eyes falling shut. The words were burned into his eyelids and it was all he could do to reopen them and set his scroll aside.

Slowly, he laid back down on his side, sprawling across the couch like he had the previous night. For a moment, he wished he was as drunk as he had been then, but he wasn’t sure his stomach could handle it. He would be surprised if he could get food down, no matter how good that continental breakfast smelled. He tossed is arm over his face, something he’d seen Qrow do during hungover mornings.

This time it wasn’t those words, but Raven. Her pale face was schooled into her usual passive, stoic expression, but Taiyang knew her better than that; she couldn’t hide anything from him. There was a gleam in her eye, much like there had been when he swung at her two years back. ‘I told you so,’ her garnet eyes gloated. ‘I warned you and you didn’t do anything.’

As usual, she had escaped any and all responsibility in the situation, leaving others to pick up the pieces.

Frustration bubbled up in his chest and he huffed out a sigh. Gods, he missed Summer. She would know what to do. She always did.

To his left, he heard the bed shift, footsteps and then felt weight settling beside him.

“You alright, Tai?” Qrow asked. His tone clearly stated he knew that Taiyang wasn’t ‘alright’ and wanted to know what was wrong.

His only response was to hand Qrow his scroll and listen as Qrow read through. He wasn’t Summer, but he was there for him and in recent years, Tai had relied on him every bit as much as her.

There was no hitch of breath, no sigh of defeat or stiffening in fear. Qrow hummed an acknowledgement. “I see. Think you’ll be able to face them today?”

“Well, I can’t let them-”

“None o’ that,” Qrow grumbled, elbowing him lightly. “Worry about yourself today. You can prove that you’re okay with what’s goin’ on tomorrow. Today, you have a hangover and sick stomach as far as the kids know.”

He heard Winter hum in agreement. “I’ve already told Weiss that I’ll be looking after you two for the day,” she announced.

“Lookin’ after,” Qrow muttered and Tai could practically hear him roll his eyes. “What’re we? A couple of teenagers that got into the whisky?”

“It wouldn’t be too far off,” Winter replied with mock condescension. He could hear her stand and approach as well, and then felt her hand rest hesitantly on one of his shoulders. “This whole situation is… difficult. For all of you. From what I know, you’ve been doing your best for Ruby and Yang; for now, take time for yourself.”

Taiyang let out a chuckle. “Hard to argue with both of you.”

“Impossible, really,” Qrow drawled. “Now, are you going to eat, or do you need to empty your stomach first?”

He pulled his arm off his face and couldn’t help but smile up at the pair. “I guess I could eat.”

~

Yang looked up from her scroll to see Ruby lingering in the doorway.

She had left ten minutes prior, after separating their beds as promised and reinstating the nightstand that once sat between them so many months ago.

As relieved as she was to have everything out in the open, it felt like there was a new weight to every look and touch and smile exchanged, like their whole bond had been flipped on its head. And yet… so little had actually been altered. Something had shifted, sure, but this was still Ruby. Ruby, her little sister, her best friend, the bravest person she knew- and likely ever would know.

Yang exhaled shakily, tucking her scroll into her pocket; if her dad had anything to say, he wasn’t ready to say it yet, and she could hardly blame him for it. “What’s up?” she asked.

Ruby’s mouth kicked up at one corner and she leaned slightly into the doorframe, almost shy- one of the few shifts Yang was already noticing. “Well, we were wondering if you wanted to try out that game Weiss got you? So… we could all hang out and see what it’s like?”

“Uh, yeah. Sure,” Yang agreed, hauling herself to her feet.

Ruby was already rocking back and forth on the balls of her feet, that half smile turning into an earnest grin. “Cool! Sable’s already made popcorn and Weiss is making some hot chocolate. I’m guessing you’ll want some of that peppermint whatchamacallit in yours?”

She shook her head firmly. “Nope. No more drinking for like a month. I think I hit half of my yearly quota last night.”

A few different emotions ran across Ruby’s face, but she settled on content. “Yeah, that probably a good idea. I’d rather you not pull a Qrow on us.”

They both wrinkled their noses.

There was a bit of hesitation as Yang brushed lightly past Ruby, but neither said anything, the latter following the former down stairs. The scent of popcorn hit her nose, easily cancelling out the hot chocolate the moment they entered the living room.

The others must have assumed that Yang would agree, because there was a space for her at the center of the couch. Weiss sat on one side and Sable had draped themself across the other, legs dangling over the armrest and popcorn bowl balanced precariously on their unbound chest- something Yang took as a sign of comfort, that they knew none of RWBY would misgender them regardless of their presentation. Meanwhile, Blake sat a few inches down from Weiss, giving her the earlier requested space; the pair spoke softly between sips of their hot drinks. Ajax rested comfortably at Weiss’s feet while Zwei napped in his carrier.

Gods, the image was domestic.

“Hey,” Yang greeted, trotting down the last few steps and making a beeline to the open space and plucking her favored controller off the coffee table. “What were you going to do if I said I didn’t want to play?” she asked lightly, noting the already set up game and console. All she needed was to make a character.

“You weren’t,” Blake answered blithely, hardly reacting as Ruby laid her head on her lap. “You want to find as many bugs as possible before the developers finally fix it.”

She couldn’t stop herself from snickering as she launched into character creation, already charging through her usual fantasy picks: tall, female, orc, DPS class etc. “You know me too well,” she decided.

“We were also betting you’d go with a heavy melee class,” Weiss piped up, looking a little too content with herself. She squeaked when Yang tossed an arm over her shoulder and gave her a squeeze.

“I need to quit gaming with you,” Yang informed her without much heat. “I get really sick of your backseat protagonist-ing.”

Weiss’s nose wrinkled in mild agitation, but settled into Yang’s side anyway. “You make poor choices.”

“I know, but why do you keep talking over my gaming?”

Sable scoffed. “That was a weak one, even for you.”

Yang favored them with a middle finger and proceeded to snag a handful of popcorn.

“Careful,” Weiss ordered, “or you’ll be vacuuming the couch cushions.”

Ruby snorted. “You make us do that even when we’re careful.”

“Thank you for volunteering, Ruby.”

Blake and Yang snickered at her expense, Yang far more boisterous about it, of course. Blake soothed Ruby’s scowl at Blake’s betrayal with a kiss on the forehead.

“You’re so gay,” Sable mumbled. “All of you.”

“Bi,” Yang corrected.

“Am I being kicked out?” they joked.

The other three groaned as Yang smirked. “Well played.”

“Says you,” Ruby muttered, leaning over to scratch Ajax’s ears. “Hey, can we get a pet of our own once Ajax is living with Olive?”

“Didn’t we already have this discussion?” Blake asked. “No dogs.”

“We’re not getting a tarantula, no matter what Weiss says,” Yang added, earning her second elbow to the ribs. “And you know I don’t like birds.”

Ruby frowned up at them all and Yang felt a little bad. “Maybe I’ll rethink my stance on cats,” she decided. The way her face lit up soothed any- well, most of the reservations she had. She couldn’t help but associate cats with the ornery beast one of her childhood friends had- gods, she couldn’t even remember that friend’s face. Clara! That was her name; they hadn’t spoken since she started at Signal.

Weiss’s voice pulled her out of the memories. “I would be fine with a cat- but an adopted one! Not bought from a breeder. And they have to be spayed or neutered _immediately_.”

Blake just nodded along, seemingly indifferent.

“Can it still be a kitten?” Ruby asked, tone prodding and hopeful.

“As long as it’s from a no-kill shelter, it can be whatever you want.”

“Can I get visiting rights?” Sable asked. “I haven’t had a cat since I was little.”

Weiss peered at them around Yang, who was already returning her focus to the screen before her. “As long as you don’t start nicknaming them and teaching bad habits.”

“Bad habits? Me?”

Blake spoke up before Weiss could shoot back. “I think I’d like a lizard.” There was a pause followed by several heads turning in Blake’s direction and she flushed slightly under the multitude of stares. “Bearded dragons are really cute,” she muttered, half to herself.

Weiss narrowed her eyes. “Do they need to be fed live animals?”

“Just bugs,” Blake answer quickly, “plants and vitamins. Anything else is optional.”

Sable spoke up. “Sounds like she’s done her research.”

“Well, after Ruby mentioned pets a while back…” Blake trailed off.

Now Weiss looked concerned. “Why didn’t you bring it up before? You know what- I don’t care. I’ll do some research too and we’ll talk about this.” She turned her gaze to Ruby. “And we can talk about cats once we have all the supplies and we can divide up responsibilities.”

Ruby squealed happily, “Thank you, thank you, thank you, Weiss!”

“Don’t thank me yet,” Weiss muttered darkly, “you’ll probably be the one on clean up duty.”

Yang barely suppressed a snort at the look on Ruby’s face.

~

“Hey, Olive, what’s- are you alright?” Weiss’s tone changed halfway through her sentence. “You look like-”

“Yeah, yeah,” Olive muttered, ducking her head so that more of her hair covered her face, red and puffy. “Don’t worry about it.”

“But-”

Olive cut her off again, “Fine, you can worry about it, but I don’t want to talk about it.” Her voice cracked. “Please tell me you’ve been better off the last few weeks than I have.”

Weiss wanted to know, but… she looked like she could use a distraction. “So, you were right about Blake. Evidently she’s been in love with me for the past two years.”

That got Olive’s attention, her bloodshot eyes peeking out from her sheet of hair. “Holy shit, really?”

“Yang and Ruby too- just not as long,” Weiss continued.

“I think I’m delirious,” Olive mumbled.

Weiss laughed a bit. “I thought so too, when I heard it!” She launched into the story, skirting around Yang and Ruby’s issues. It was a relief to watch Olive’s mood visibly rise and her form straighten up, especially when their little meeting that morning was followed up with stories of Ajax and Zwei.

By the time Weiss ran out of words, Olive’s expression was thoughtful. “I hope this all goes well,” she told Weiss softly. “I know how much you guys all mean to each other.” She paused and reconsidered. “Well, as much I possibly can,” she corrected with a lopsided smile.

“I’m glad we’re friends,” Weiss murmured, sharing the smile.

“Me too,” Olive agreed. There was some noise in the background- yelling? And Olive sighed deeply. “I’ve gotta go, Weiss. It was good to hear from you. Take care.” She hung up before Weiss could respond, as the yelling began to rise in volume.

Weiss’s hands trembled as she set her scroll aside, resting it face down on her bed and digging her fingers into the covers until she could make the shaking stop. Gods, it brought back memories.

There was a light knock on her door and she forced herself still. “Come in,” she called, keeping her tone even.

Yang slipped inside, closing the door behind her.

“Olive doing alright?” She blanched and then added, “I heard you say her name when I first came up and didn’t want to barge in.”

Weiss shrugged. “She’s looking forward to seeing Ajax again,” she evaded.

Yang smiled as she sat on the end of Weiss’s bed. “Can’t blame her- the pup’s a ball of sunshine. Don’t tell Blake, but I’m going to miss him.”

“Hah, I’m sure she knows.”

“Probably,” Yang agreed.

The pair were quiet for a beat.

“I called Dr. Ward,” she confessed.

Weiss straightened and turned to face Yang fully. “Really? What did he say?”

“Not much,” Yang said, “I did most of the talking. But… I feel better. And it doesn’t seem like he’s going to call anyone on us over our little-” she made a vague gesture, one that Weiss didn’t quite get, “agreement.”

Weiss brought a gentle hand to Yang’s shoulder. “He just wants your mental health and wellbeing, nothing more, nothing less. I’m sure he’ll be on your side throughout this.”

Yang smiled shily. “I think I’m good on my own right now, at least.”

“Oh?”

“Well, I would like to think that I don’t need Ward’s help to ask you on a proper date,” she said lightly. “I know you’ve only just agreed to this, but-”

“Of course, Yang,” Weiss cut in, a smile settling across her lips. “I’d like that. Do you have something specific in mind?”

Yang bit her lip. “Honestly? I thought you were going to be harder to convince.”

Weiss smirked. “Maybe you do need Dr. Ward’s help.”

“You’re the worst,” Yang grumbled, unable to keep the affection out of her tone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Someone hug Taiyang, he needs it. Yang too, honestly, but she's doing better. Don't know how many of you would want to hug Olive, but she's in dire need as well. Everyone gets a ride on the angst train!
> 
> Anyway, I'm tired, so let me know of any mistakes! Hope you know that I value all of your comments; you guys keep me going when the depression gets rough and my creative drive dries up <3

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you enjoyed?
> 
> Please, tell me what you thought, what you want in the future, and if I missed any grammar or spelling checks.
> 
> Have a lovely day!


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